


Make 'em Proud

by Firefly_606



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: F/F, F/M, Female Student!Reader, Levi Ackerman - Freeform, Levi x Reader - Freeform, Multi, Teacher!Levi x Student!Reader, Teachere!Levi x Female Student!Reader, attack on titan - Freeform, dom!levi, shingeki no kyojin - Freeform, switch!Reader
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-19
Updated: 2020-07-13
Packaged: 2021-02-28 20:28:36
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Underage
Chapters: 9
Words: 26,634
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23213290
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Firefly_606/pseuds/Firefly_606
Summary: A Teacher!Levi x FemaleStudent!Reader Fanfiction-Work in progress--> Chapter eight Completed
Relationships: Christa Lenz | Historia Reiss/Ymir, Levi (Shingeki no Kyojin)/Reader, Levi/Reader, Mikasa Ackerman/Eren Yeager, Reiner Braun/Bertolt Hoover, Reiner Braun/Reader
Comments: 14
Kudos: 46





	1. Information

**Information**

I will update the tags, characters and relationships when I include them in the story because I don't know what I'm gonna write just yet.

At the beginning of the chapters there will be a short explanation for new short forms that will also be listed on this first page.

Short forms:

Y/N: Your Name

Y/L/N: Your Last Name

Y/H/C: Your Hair Color


	2. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short form explanation:  
> Y/N: Your Name  
> Y/L/N: Your Last Name

I entered the bus, walking to the back and took a seat next to a window. After I placed my heavy, black schoolbag on the seat next to me I checked my phone. The bus was already 8 minutes late when it drove off, means I only had a few minutes to get to my locker, put my books inside and run to my class or I could walk to class directly.

My first class was English so it would not be too bad if I came in late since Mrs. Byrne was always the last one to enter the classroom. Sometimes she was so late that even the people who take the train to school are there earlier although they would have to take the earlier one to be on time. Still I did not want to be that late because she does not bother if you come late but she still writes it down and the chances that she is on time are low but never zero. The old lady was however quite nice as long as you were more on time than her. That alone made you pass her class although her lessons did not require much of an effort. No test, no homework-checks, and the most undemanding exams I ever had to take. Having her as a teacher was really the dream of every poor soul who was as bad at English as me. If I had not been in her class, I probably would have failed every exam and ruined my diploma.

It is not like I am a bad student, but I just do not get why we have to take a class on a language that we speak all the time and who cares about grammar anyways.

The bus stopped a few minutes later and I got up from the seat carrying my bag in one hand and headed out through the middle door of the bus. Most of the people who take this bus get off a few stops later when it reaches more into the city since I live not that far from school but in a rather expensive area. Most of the students who attend the same school as I live in the big residential area that begins right behind the school ground and reaches to the fields at the outskirt.

I had to walk a bit until I reached the gates of our school. This morning I ran all the way along the big stone wall covered in ivy and tendrils till I could see a few other students rushing to school. It was easy to make out the students attending the same high school as me since we had a school uniform that everyone had to wear. Our distinguishing feature was the bright scarlet red tie that got to one’s eyes first. Underneath it the girls had to wear a white blouse, short sleeves for the warm days and long sleeves for the colder ones, and the guys had to wear white shirts, also short sleeves for the warm days and long sleeves for the cold ones. Most of the days like today I just wore a simple black jacket over the shirt that was waterproof because even if I didn't wear it it was better to have it on me just in case that it starts to rain. Been there, done that. Never again. Whatever counts as warm or cold was up to our decision. Then for the boys it was plain, long, black pants for the whole year as for the girls we were supposed to wear skirts that were pleated with black, white and the same red as our ties were in. There were three lengths, the short skirts that barely covered everything that a skirt should cover, the average sized ones that covered one’s thighs and the long ones that reached over your knees. Everyone had at least two of a kind, but I never wore one of the long ones before, they make you seem way too cagey. Better look like a slut and wear a short skirt than wearing a long skirt. As for today I even wore a short skirt because both of my skirts of average length were not dry this morning, guess I put them in the washing machine too late in the evening, my own fault. Means I had to run now and still keep an eye on how high my skirts lifts with every step. For our shoes there weren't that many limitations it just had to be a real shoe not like sandals or flip flops so I wore some simple black platform boots out of faux leather that made me a good 4 inches taller and had me even more struggling my way to class.

At this point I was late either way so I stopped by at my locker to store the books I didn't need now which made it at least a bit easier now to carry a back that wasn't dragging me down to the floor when I was already trying to appear taller. As I was just about to walk upstairs, "damn it why does my first class have to be on the third floor when I'm already late" I whispered under my breath, the principal called out to me. "Miss Y/L/N, you're late", he said in a loud tone, not yelling at me or with an angry undertone to it, just a strong voice that filled the halls of the clean and almost empty hall of the building.

I flinched and turned on my heel. "Good morning Sir, I know I'm late, that's why I was just about to get to class". We were on good terms since he knew that I did my best and we sometimes talked when I stayed in late to sell some pastries and drinks to the parents on visiting day to raise money for our social club. The money goes into other projects or is donated to organizations or schools in developing countries.

I saw him smile. "Come on, we'll give take you with us with the elevator. You don't have to run upstairs.".

 _This man is such a blessing_ , I thought while walking towards him and another man that I had not noticed before and that I had never seen before either. "Thank you so much principle Smith", was the only thing I said to him before stepping in the elevator with the two men.

For a moment I thought the small room behind the now closing metal doors was going to be filled with an awkward silence until the other man started talking.

"Are you doing this for every student?", he asked bluntly. My eyes wandered over to him. I still had not paid much attention to him but when I did, I almost choked on my own saliva. He was smoking hot and that glare let a shiver run down my spine. I turned my gaze towards the floor in an instant. He was rather short that was for sure, but I also cheated with my height so that is that.

"What do you think of me? Of course, I don't do this for every student, but we're also on our way up so why not take her with us. Also, she is way faster this way and it is less likely that she hurts herself while running upstairs", Mr. Smith answered him with a calm voice and chuckled after that. The other man only blinked. Absolutely no reaction could be seen on his face, he must be great at poker with that much control over his expression. "So? It is her own fault for being late. If she were on time she wouldn't have to run and if she would wear normal shoes and not those ankle breakers it would be no problem to climb a few stairs without getting hurt.". This made Mr. Smith laugh out loud.

My thoughts went wild over that comment, _excuse me but what did you just say about my shoes you little twink? You do realize that I am standing right next to you, do you?_ I turned my gaze to him once again but this time with a slightly shocked expression. Who does he think he is? But still there was no reaction from him. Even worse, he finished it off with another comment on top, "Or is she something like a special student?"

A special student? Was he thinking about what I think he meant when saying that? Who the hell just says something like this with a straight face? Oh, please let this be over soon.

"My, my, I think you got me wrong there. Of course, every student is special in their own way but it's nothing like that. Y/N is a very polite and smart young woman. She acts very mature, openly and is not afraid to talk without mincing words either. I simply enjoy a good talk with her, maybe you two will get along as well as we do."

"I don't know so well about that. I'd rather keep my relationships with the students professional. They need to know that I am their teacher, a person with authority, not a friend."

Okay, wait a minute. Never is that guy a teacher, he could be a student still or someone who just graduated but a teacher, hell no. I really need to stay away from him or we will get into a fight one day, I can already sense it. This scumbag means trouble for me.

I cleared my throat and looked up to Mr. Smith. "I'm sorry but I was listening to the conversation you two just had and overheard how it was mentioned that Mr.- erg..." nice one Y/N, you started talking without even thinking about what you were saying. "Ackerman", the short guy to my right completed my sentence while I was stumbling over my own words. "T-thank you. That Mr. Ackerman is a teacher, I have never seen him around tho.". Mr. Ackerman only chuckled once disparaging. "No wonder, he just came to our school since I asked for him personally as a substitute. I am sorry to tell you, but it seems like one of our fellow colleagues is retiring already although we're in the middle of the school year." I only nodded once, then finally the doors of the elevator opened, revealing a world outside of this cage where I had been trapped in what seemed like forever with that grumpy stack of pancakes and my guardian who tried to defend me in front of him.

"Well, then thank you Sir for taking me with you and I hope we meet again soon. Have a nice day, you of course too Mr. Ackerman", I forced myself to say the last words with the sweetest voice I could have before turning around and heading right to my classroom.

The moment I walked through the entrance of the room I had a great feeling of relief. Mrs. Byrne was not sitting at the front desk and I couldn't see her anywhere else in the room which meant that me being late was not as much of a deal as it could have been. I headed to my seat in the front row next to one of my closest friends Christa. I did not get along too well with other girls, but Christa and I were good with each other. After I placed my bag underneath the table, I let myself sink down on the chair.

"Why are you late, I was worried about you", were the first words that blurted out of her mouth. Then she looked at me and asked me a bit judgmental "And why are you wearing the short skirt? Did I forget about something or why didn't you tell me? I thought we had an agreement on that".

Yeah, right, we had a deal with each other that we would tell the other one when we'd wear the short skirt because it makes it less uncomfortable if you're not the only one wearing it in your group of friends and it isn't that awkward for the other one when walking through the halls with the others staring.

"I'm so sorry, but my other skirts were still wet this morning and it was already late, so I figured you were already on your way to school.".

"And when did you think about that? Be honest, you don't have to make excuses for having your thoughts somewhere else, it's just the way you are.".

 _She was right._ I only sighed and let my head down "You know me too well; I should really stop trying to lie to you. Actually, I forgot about it until you mentioned it just now. It won't happen again; I promise but I can make up to it. You won't ever believe what happened just a few minutes ago"

In the blink of an eye she threw off her bad mood and leaned herself more towards me. "Now I'm curious, what's the tea. Come on I want to know.", she started bubbling out of curiosity and nosiness.

"I was running late because my bus was late, you know how that is. However, when I was just about to run up the stairs Mr. Smith called out for me and offered me to take the elevator with him and another guy."

She smiled like crazy "It's the skirt. I swear you are getting along way too well with the principal and you don't even have him in any subject.":

I hit her arm teasingly. "You are delusional. Okay, focus, now comes the interesting part.", I continued to compress the situation that had occurred just moments ago, "Well Mr. Smith was as polite as usual and no, I am still not crushing on him, he is just nice. But that other guy. Damn, he didn't even look like a teacher, he was so sexy. That short, straight, black hair styled in an undercut and these grey eyes with a piercing glance as if he is focusing on his prey. From his looks only he is totally a keeper, but he's got some attitude that fun sized wannabe teacher.".

"So, you have a crush on him, not on Mr. Smith. At least none of you would have to lean down as long as you keep your shoes on.". Christa started teasing me.

"Never, he is way too self-absorbed and that name is just as ridiculous as him. Mr. Ackerman.", I spat out his name in disgust, "He doesn't even know me and criticized me and my looks while talking to Mr. Smith as if I wasn't there.".

"Well you are wearing your shoes, so it is not that easy to overlook you, but I bet your Guardian angel Principal Smith defended you in front of him"

You slowly started losing it on her teasing you "Oh come on, it's not like you're that much taller than me and to your information, yes, Mr. Smith defended me.".

"Okay, jokes aside, you said Mr. Ackerman, right? Isn't that Mikasas' last name? What if they are related?". She had a point, but that could never be. Mikasa was pretty quiet and a bit harsh but if you knew her more personally, she was a nice girl, just in her own way of showing it.

"They can't be related; they are just way to different.".

"Anyways, speaking of Mikasa, are you coming to her party on Saturday? I heard that she has the house all to herself, which means that there's going to be a lot of Alcohol and a lot of drunk guys.".

I sighed and shrugged my shoulders "Reiner has been bugging me with that too. It hasn't been one day since she invited us that he didn't ask me about it.".

"Can you blame him? I think he wants to take the next step in your relationship.".

"No shit sherlock. Don't you think I know about that too? After we've been together for almost half a year now he keeps giving me hints on that lately but he still kisses me like I'm going to shatter if he touches me or doesn't back up instantly after our lips meet. I seriously don't know what to do about it, so I just try to go out of his way.".

Christa attempted replying to me rambling about all that was going out lately but got cut off immediately when Mr. Smith cleared his throat loudly. I did not even notice him entering the room.

 _There he was, standing in front of our classroom with his blank stare like before looking like a total snack. His white shirt was a bit loose around his waist although he had tucked it in his black pants that made him look even slimmer than he was. The space between the white fabric and him revealed the tiniest bit of his muscular and pale body_. No, I did not mean to think that. I wanted to focus on Mr. Smith, but my thoughts were all over Mr. Ackerman. I looked over to Christa. _Fuck._ She was totally checking him out while she kept switching between him and me. Then finally she stopped and looked me straight in the eyes with the widest smile that could possibly fit on her face. "He's really a total hottie", she whispered, leaning over so only I was able to hear her.

_I know, but he is still an asshole..._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So that was the first chapter. I hope you like my style of writing, it's not perfect yet but I'm working on it. I'll try finishing the next chapter as soon as possible  
> ~ Firefly_606


	3. Chapter 2

I did not react to the last thing Christa said to me. My attention was completely fixated on Mr. Smith, eyes piercing through him until my thoughts cleared.

"I have an announcement to make. As you might have noticed, Mrs. Byrne has not come yet.", he began with a low voice.

 _Well, as if that would make any difference from every other Thursday._ But he was right, it was pretty late, even Mrs. Byrne should be here by now.

Something was off.

"And I am sorry to tell you that she won't be coming back again. Due to personal affairs she had to take a break from her work here at school and since she would retire after the summer break we decided that it would be best for everyone to have her retire from today on so you can get used to your substitute teacher. Now although I understand that most of you expected to graduate this class with Mrs. Byrne and that this is a major change that occurred all of a sudden but nevertheless I am happy to introduce all of you to your substitute teacher Mr. Ackerman. He will be taking over your class from today until you graduate which means that although he is a substitute right now, he will be your official teacher for your English class after the summer break. I hope you will get along well and since I've known him for a long time I can assure you that he is a great teacher and will do his best to give you the tuition you need to graduate. Then I guess everything that had to be said was said and with that I wish you all a good day.".

Mr. Smith left the room and closed the door behind him carefully without making a lot of noise, after all the lesson had already started a good 23 Minutes ago. Mr. Ackerman carefully placed his jacket on the back of the chair of his desk. Then he lifted up his black briefcase and put it on the desk in front of him. The whole class was focusing on him in silence but soon you could hear people whisper and then their chattering began to increase in volume. He did not seem to bother as he kept searching for some files which he put on the desk as well as our book after he found it. He closed the briefcase and placed it on the floor, so it was leaning against the table. Meanwhile the volume in the class was so loud you could think the teacher was still absent.

Suddenly Mr. Ackerman took his book and slammed it on the desk causing a loud bang which filled the room and left it in silence. Everyone was focusing on him again.

"I guess you got it that I appreciate it if you shut up even if I didn't give you your tasks yet. Everyone who gets caught talking while I give you tasks adds an additional task to the homework for the whole class, I hope I made my point clear.", he hissed with a dead voice and a dead face as usual. The whole class was captivated in an instant and it felt as if we just entered a military training.

"Like principal Smith said I'm going to be your new teacher which means I need to know what you learned until now. You there, pass these out", he almost threw the pile of papers at Connie who was sitting right at the front desk. He did not even hesitate and got up passing out the papers to everyone.

"Now, Miss Y/L/N was it?", Mr. Ackerman glanced at me from the corner of his eye. A shiver was sent down my spine when I heard him call me with his cold voice and I could sense how the whole class was looking at me considering that the new teacher already knew my name. "Yes, Sir.", was all that I answered him.

"Tell me your full name and come to the blackboard please.", he demanded.

I stood up and walked past Connie who had just finished passing out the papers and his look gave me the feeling that all he would want to say to me at this time would be "Good Luck" but of course he didn't do that because it would've meant more homework for everyone. As I was making my way to the blackboard my eyes were glued to Mr. Ackerman trying to read his face, but it was a waste of time. No matter how hard you tried it was simply impossible to read this man.

Mr. Ackerman had taken his seat and looked over to me. "Please write 9 am on the blackboard and don't smear it, the others should be able to read it."

 _There it was again. He was such a tease making fun of my handwriting without having it seen before._ I started writing the time down trying to write it as neatly as possible, then I put the chalk down.

"You may take your seat again", he ordered. _No problem I enjoyed it, bastard. Cannot even be thankful._ "Now what your fellow classmate just wrote on the blackboard is the time you have to finish the paper that you just received. It is like a test and will test your vocabulary, grammar, and your abilities to write a summary. All of this can be found in your books which means you had the chance to learn everything. The test will determine your grade for the two lessons today and when you have finished I want you to come to the front and you'll receive your homework which you can start and continue to work on the second lesson. If you have any questions you can always ask me, but I do not answer dumb questions. Then get started and I hope you don't disappoint me too much.". When he had finished talking everyone started to work on their papers. He has prepared four pages that we had to finish within 30 minutes, is that even possible? The first page was testing our vocabulary, which meant I tried my best to fill in the gaps, taking roughly 6 Minutes on that one. The next page had multiple tasks that tested our grammar, the basics were done easily but there were some tasks where I just guessed the right answers. I had never seen such grammar exercises in my whole life, and I knew not one of the rules, so I just wrote some things that sounded not completely wrong. Then the third page was an article that spread over the whole page. About 60 lines and I had about, I looked at the clock hanging next to the door, 8 minutes left, after I had read all of it there were only 6 minutes left. _How the hell am I supposed to finish this on time? This man is the devil in person._

The first students went to the front and turned their sheets in but from the looks on their faces I could tell that the homework would be as bad as this test. I turned to the last page which was filled with lines for the summary. _Okay, you got this. Summaries were the only thing you were really good at in your exams, it is only a whole lot of text which you have to write down in a few sentences._

"You have to turn your papers in now. Stop writing and come to the front and don't forget the new sheet.", he commanded like he was our dictator who he kind of was. I had just finished the final word of the last exercise, so I got up and laid the sheet on top of the other ones that were already piling up in front of the black-haired demon. Then I grabbed the new sheet and skimmed over it only to see a bunch of exercises which would take the whole next lesson and maybe even some time at home to finish these and on top of it we had to learn four pages of vocabulary because he had settled another vocabulary test for the lesson tomorrow. I cannot stress it enough how this guy is pissing me off and I only met him an hour ago.

He stood up from his chair and prepared himself for another speech. "I hope everyone had the time to take a look at the exercises and noticed that we'll be having another test settled for tomorrow which will hopefully be better than what I read just now. Is it so fucking difficult to follow the order last name, name when it is already written on the paper like that" he frowned and put his hand against his forehead, "now get back to your tasks and do them properly, I might check on them. And one last warning, if any of you attend my class late you can either stay outside the room because I won't tolerate you disturbing me while I'm trying to teach the others some basic English or you can be prepared to get a shit ton of exercises on top of the ones you already have to do. So better be on time, always.". I knew he was addressing this to me specifically because he knew I would have been late to class today. Anyways I started to work on the exercises, checking on Christa once who looked so terrified that it was hard to imagine how she reacted the first time she saw him.

While we were all working on our tasks the class was so silent you could hear the pens screeching over the paper when writing something down. In the meantime, Mr. Ackerman had put on some disposable gloves and started to clean the blackboard. First, he cleaned the sponge for a good five minutes until it was almost clean again, then he precisely cleaned the blackboard as if he had some special technique. Every move was the same, almost inhuman, and scary. When he had finished that he put the sponge back to its usual place and threw the gloves in the trash only to sit down at his desk and start correcting the papers.

The heavy atmosphere that was weighing all of us down cleared a little when the bell rang, and Mr. Ackerman dismissed us. I stuffed everything into my bag and walked out of the room where I was waiting for Christa. Just a few seconds later she came through the door and ran into my arms. "That guy is a monster how are we supposed to survive high school with him as our teacher. Now I want a guard like Mr. Smith too. It's a wonder that he didn't eat us alive", she bawled while I stroked her soft, blonde hair slowly.

"I told you so", was everything I could say, "now let's forget about this guy and get to our lockers, he already ruined the beginning of our day, he will not get to us anymore today.". That said we walked down to the ground floor where our lockers were. As soon as we walked through the halls it was as if a celebrity had entered the room. There were a few rumors about us going around and they just kept piling up, so we did not even bother about denying them anymore, we just had them run their mouths over us. My short skirt and the jacket did not help it that much.

After we got our books for the next class we went to our usual spot on the stairs outside where the others were already waiting for us.

The first one to talk was Connie, the words almost bursted out of his mouth. "Y/N is it true that you had an affair with the new sub teacher?". Bertolt slapped him on the back of his head, "what kind of question is that, she is in a relationship with Reiner and she wouldn't start an affair with someone that much older than her especially if that person is a teacher. Or would you Y/N?".

Annie, Ymir, and Sasha looked at me furiously and I sensed that Christa was also looking at me. Mikasa just minded her own business and the guys were still looking at me with wide eyes waiting for me to answer. That's the point why I can't get along with other girls that well, they just assume everything somebody says about me is true and I can only imagine how I would get an even more popular reputation for being difficult and trouble in any means. I just flashed a bright smile "Bertolt is right, I have a boyfriend and you guys know all the rumors and how they spread like a wildfire. But even if I had an affair with him, do you really think I would tell anyone?". The girls eased their stares and the boys were only left in confusion because of the last part of my answer. "Come to think of the new substitute, Mikasa, his name is Mr. Ackerman. Please tell me you guys are not related", I addressed her directly. She looked me in the eyes and from that look alone I knew her answer was not going to be very pleasing.

"My cousin moved here a few months, but I don't know if he works as a teacher neither if he works at our school. I can tell you if he's your teacher on Saturday he will probably check on us from time to time because he promised my parents to keep an eye on us.".

I thought about it for a second and wanted to answer he, but in that moment the guys started to scream as a greeting at Reiner who was just walking over to our group. _Dumb idiots, will they ever grow up._ I rolled my eyes while Reiner walked up to me. He bent down and leaned in to peck my lips, still nothing more than that. I mean I understood that it was everything he did while we were at school, but it was the farthest we had ever gone.

"Nawww, you guys are so cute", Ymir chimed in. She instantly received a hit with the elbow from Christa for that comment. Christa was the only one who knew that although most of the rumors were false, some were still true and all that cute, lovey dovey stuff made me almost gag. I was only a year younger than him but still he treated me like he knew everything but in reality, he was just scared to go further. It was uncommon for me to have a boyfriend. Actually, that is why all the rumors started to spread. Some guys were asking me out but I never wanted to have a relationship so one day the guys just started spreading that I made out with them and slept with them, sometimes even for money, and then I just dumped them once I was done. So basically, I was the school slut but the whole reputation was based on rumors and still guys were trying to have me fall for them. I could not stand these dumb puppies that were constantly gathering around me waiting for me to finally choose them to pet them, so I agreed on having a relationship with Reiner. He does not look that bad and he might not be the smartest cookie in the jar, but he was nice. And because he was pretty tall and muscular the other guys started showing up. Looking back, I regret taking a nice guy over a smart one because if he had more than two brain cells, he would have taken my hints.

"And Y/N, did you make up your mind about Saturday? Are you coming to Mikasa’s' party?". And there it was again, he looked at me all excited for me to answer and all I could do was to roll my eyes, again. Christa seemed to have noticed that because I caught her trying to stay composed and she held her hand in front of her face to not break out in laughter.

"She has to, at least she has to check whether the new teacher is Mikasa’s' relative or not. He knew her name already and it seems to be his first day here at school, just saying.", Connie threw in giggling. _Thanks for that._ I could see how Reiner got angry, but he tried to hide it. "I don't think that Y/N would start something with a teacher and if she had an affair with the old man I am rather sorry for her that she got abused by a perverted adult that made a move on a vulnerable young girl. I would never force her to do anything she wouldn't want to do, we can take all the time we need, right?", again he expected me to simply agree like he knew everything. I mean, okay, I maybe just nodded to avoid a dispute with him right in front of our friends. "You guys do know that that teacher student affair is only a rumor right, I did never sleep with a teacher and I never got abused, you seriously need to calm down about this", I tried to lift the atmosphere a bit and it worked because the others kept minding their own business and we didn't talk about it anymore. The rest of the day went by pretty fast; I didn't have that many lessons anyways and since they weren't that hard or boring the time flew by.

At the end of the day I took my bag, threw it over my shoulder and walked through the gate of our school. The sun was covered by some clouds which made it more comfortable to walk not in the heat but in a lightly warm temperature. The younger students were all excited about meeting up after school and you could easily tell them apart from the others. I always walked took the bus home on my own since the others lived in the opposite direction, the only one living near me would be Mikasa but she either stayed in school for tutoring or she went to Eren's. The two were together but they did not show it at least not when they were sober. It was rare to see them apart but when they were drunk it was like the alcohol glued the together. I sat down on the bench at the bus stop since I was quite early. Well, actually I was pretty late and missed the bus by seven minutes but that meant that the next bus would arrive in only twelve more minutes.

I spent the time on my phone playing some dumb games at which I wasn't even good at, but it was only to pass the time, so it worked. That was pretty much my routine for waiting and for when sitting in the bus. I was bad at getting rid of my boredom but at the same time I did not really try to do anything against it, I just left it the way it was. I used to listen to music but it is way more interesting to listen to the conversations of strangers, you don't know anything about them and you probably won't see them again or at least not that often and the next day you already forgot about what they said or how they looked. It was just nice for the moment. Also, it was interesting to listen when people were talking about oneself.

I could hear a small group of guys who kept mumbling to each other. The one guy started with something like "Do you see that girl over there?" and the other ones kept it going.

"The one in the short skirt from our school?".

"Yes, she is in the eleventh grade, but she is the one you hear from all the time. They say she slept with almost every senior when she was in her first year at our school.".

"No way, this has to be a lie.".

"I don't know so well; I mean everyone knows her.".

"Even the new teacher they say", he chuckled, "the scary substitute. They say he knew her, and it is possible that she had or has an affair with him.".

"Doesn't she have a boyfriend?".

"Yes, but that guy is only an alibi, he scares away the guys without money and keeps her image upright.".

"So, he is something like her pimp?".

"I think so, maybe they split the cash she makes from sleeping with others or he gets paid from the teacher, so they don't get exposed.".

"But isn't that illegal, I mean an affair between a student and a teacher.".

"Sure, it is, but as long as they don't get caught together, they have nothing against them.".

"And I heard that the substitute is a friend of Mr. Smith. Maybe it is not that much of a coincidence that there were rumors about her and Mr. Smith on having an affair too. Maybe he covers them for some fun from time to time if you know what I mean.".

"Only looking at her you know that this girl is wild in the bedroom.".

"Do you think she would make out with me if I paid her enough?".

"If you're brave enough to approach her when her bodyguard is next to her, sure.".

Finally, the bus arrived at the bus stop where I had to get off. I got up and went to the door, waiting for it to open up.

"Her body really is gorgeous tho.".

"And she walks like a model on those heels.".

"I think I just saw her slip; god bless me.".

"Damn, you're lucky. Such a pity that she is selling herself to others.".

And then the door opened, and I walked out of the whole situation. _Saw my slip? You wish, you just wanted to brag in front of your friends. I have been wearing this skirt often enough to know when my slip is showing._ It's sad that the juniors only see me the way the others portray me, but on the other hand, could the others imagine someone else having an alibi boyfriend who is also her pimp, a real boyfriend who is her teacher and multiple one night stands which are a whole grade of seniors, the principal and other guys? I know it is nothing to be proud of, but it is also nothing to be ashamed of. As long as I know the truth it is good enough.

But I cannot stress it enough, the rumors spread like wildfires. Seems like the whole school thinks I had an affair with the new teacher, and it has only been one day. The devil works hard but these students are working harder.

I walked home directly to finish my homework, at least I did not have that much except for our English class. When I opened the door, I shouted a loud "I'm home.", although it was only me and my little kitten Sam. My parents were both doctors that were working almost all day every day and even when they were off duty, they could always be called in for an emergency so I got used to being alone at home pretty soon. At least I could convince them to get me a cat so would not be alone all day and since Sam is waiting for me to come home after school, I got the habit of greeting her. She stood on the stairs, rubbing her head against the railing, watching me how I shrunk when I took off my shoes.

I grabbed my bag, with one hand, went towards the stairs and grabbed Sam with the other one and went upstairs carrying both to my room. I entered the room, threw my bag on the ground, and placed the little gray kitten on my bed. Then I grabbed my homework and started to work on everything that was due till tomorrow. When I had finished everything, I took a shower and changed into a pair of comfortable shorts and a loose shirt, my hair loosely tied together, and I got some of the pasta that mum prepared. I laid down on my bed and opened my laptop to watch a few episodes of my favorite show, while I was petting Sam. Her fur was so fluffy, and her little face almost disappeared in it. If anyone saw me right now, they would never believe the rumors they keep spreading at school but who would think that I was a lazy couch potato. When I had finished eating, I walked downstairs in the kitchen to put the plate in the dishwasher and got a glass of water that I chugged down in an instant. I poured myself another one and took it upstairs with me. Then I did a little bit of stretching and yoga, I might be a couch potato, but I also worked on my body.

When it was dark outside, I closed my door and sat down on my bed again, focusing on the vocabulary Mr. Ackerman gave us. He really was insane thinking we could memorize all of this in only one day, but I still tried my best until I fell asleep without even noticing, sleeping on my notes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And another Chapter is done, I really tried my best to work as fast as I could because I have so many ideas right now and I also have a lot of time to work on this story.  
> ~ Firefly_606


	4. Chapter 3

I woke up from Sam licking my left cheek with her rasping tongue. As I slowly opened my eyes, I could see her trying to step on my face so I took her carefully and placed her next to me, then I reached for my phone and set myself upright. It was already 6:57 am, my alarm would have gone off in three minutes anyways, so I lifted up my blanket and got out of bed, grabbing some underwear, and my uniform. I waited a minute and thought about writing Christa with a bright grin on my face.

Y/N: Morning, what do u think about wearing our short skirts today?

Y/N: Mr. Ackerman was pissed when he saw me wearing mine yesterday, let us tease him and the other guys a bit.

You really do want the people to talk about you, don't you? Such a devil.: Christa

I'm in : Christa

Y/N: C U at school.

I threw my phone on my bed and picked my short skirt instead of the usual ones, which my mum must have brought to my room while I was asleep. Then I went to the bathroom to brush my teeth and do my hair and I still have some time, so I put on an eyeliner. _He will probably think I'm a punk now that I also wear makeup._ I thought and chuckled a little. I quickly packed my bag and went downstairs, put on my shoes, grabbed my jacket and my keys, and rushed outside. With a fast pace I made my way to the bus stop and luckily the bus was on time today which meant I would have no trouble with any teachers because I was too late and I wouldn't have to wait any longer outside because it was pretty chilly this morning.

Same as always. Went inside the bus, walked to the back to my usual place, sat down and placed my bag next to me, waiting for the time to go by.

When the bus arrived at school I went outside and walked to the gates where Christa was already waiting for me. "You are looking wild today", she screamed when I was still a few meters away. "Wait, is that make up I see on your face? You are really going wild today.", she added.

"Don't act like it's that much of a deal", I laughed at her reaction. "So I was thinking if we want to take it to the top", I took out a bright red lipstick out of the pocket of my jacket, that I grabbed right before I left from home, Christa only smiled at me and we walked straight to the bathroom to apply the lipstick properly. While we were in the girl’s bathroom a few other girls came inside throwing looks in disgust at us. It was not like we did not know how the others saw us, but we were in high school it was just for fun and it was not like we cared about the opinions of some dumb brats. Our teachers mostly got that we were only teasing the others and knew that most of the rumors were false, especially the ones that were connected to them.

When we were finished we stepped out of the bathroom, the lipstick shade matched the shade of our uniforms perfectly and we already saw heads turning towards us, which was not that normal considering the first period hadn't even started. As we were just about to walk to the classroom of miss Zoe Mr. Ackerman walked directly up to us with a, I couldn't believe it, facial expression that wasn't completely blank but I also couldn't identify what exactly he was expressing. Just as he was right in front of us and we thought he would be about to scold us for our looks he just walked past us. While he did that, I could feel myself getting goosebumps. I do not know what's worse, him reacting to us or him not reacting to us. It was almost scary that he did not leave a mean comment.

We looked at each other, eyes widened but in the next moment we broke out in laughter. Whatever he thought it must have been hilarious. So, we just kept walking to our locker, got our books and went to class. Miss Zoe was an incredibly friendly teacher and I loved her lessons. They were easy to understand but yet difficult enough for me to not get bored and she started with talking about something that was completely off topic but she talked about it with so much passion and the when she's finished it's like you turn a switch inside her and the real lesson begins. I am so glad that I got her in both biology and chemistry, it makes school so much easier. Which was what I really needed now that this coffee table was taking away all my time and nerves that I had left.

After the lesson I spent the pause with my head in my English book to get most of the vocabulary in it. I thought about cheating on the test, but Mr. Ackerman would probably catch me and that would mean more trouble and more homework for sure and a bad grade on top. If I would do that, I could end up spending the next day studying and finishing my work. I had to do good on this test. When the bell rang, I walked upstairs with my eyes still on the vocabularies until I sat down on my seat in class. Mr. Ackerman entered the room and snorted seeing all of us hovering over our books, "So, who did really study for this test? Everything you don't know now you won't remember in a few minutes either.".

He closed the door and took out the papers for the test. He really had prepared a whole page of vocabularies.

"You get 15 Minutes for this, and you need to have at least half of it right to pass. A wrong or missing word equals one mistake, a spelling mistake is only half a mistake and to everyone who writes their name down falsely I will tear the paper into little pieces which I'm going to throw into your face which will have a look that is as dumb as your entire being and you won't pass this test. So, you better think twice before writing something down. Now, you, do the same as yesterday", he threw the papers on the desk in front of Connie for him to pass them out like yesterday. He did not even bother asking for his name, he just gave him an order that Connie had to follow.

"Y/L/N, come to the front and write the time on the blackboard, then write down the exercises for the last part of this lesson and the next lesson. It's page 197, all tasks, p. 199, task 5 and the two pages of vocabularies following the ones you should learn for today.". He then sat down and took out the tests from yesterday to finish grading them. "You can pick up your test from yesterday at the end of the second lesson.".

I quickly wrote down what he told me to, but as I was still writing down the exercises, I heard him saying "you may begin now.". _Was he for real?_ I hurried to begin my test as soon as possible.

"What did I tell you, stupid Midget, you are supposed to write it down properly. Be careful not to smear it. Are you a goldfish or why do you forget such easy things just after one day? Swam your way back to class, one time around in your little fishbowl and you remember nothing that you were taught.", he spat out and sighed, "Now put the chalk down and start your test.".

 _If he keeps this going, I am going to choke him one day. I swear to god this man makes me go insane._ I turned the paper around and worked my way through the vocabularies but I hardly remembered any of these and I doubt that the ones I knew were spelled correctly, so I tried my best to write something down for every word. I am not stupid; I just need time to remember something and if it isn't anything of importance, I don't see the point in remembering it. Why would I ever need one of these vocabularies?

"Turn your tests in now and get to work", that demonic dictator in disguise of a teacher just stated without even looking up because he was already correcting the vocabulary test that were turned in early. _Holy shit he really is not human. How the hell did he correct all the other tests from yesterday in less than 15 minutes?_

I turned in the test and sat down, starting to work on the exercises that I just had written on the blackboard a few minutes ago. My mood was crushed already, but I should stay positive at least it was Friday. Tomorrow I could stay in bed longer and take all of the time I needed then in the evening I could wear some fancy make up and a comfortable yet sexy outfit to party at Mikasa’s'. And most importantly I could get drunk and forget about all of this.

The next lesson was passing by so slowly that I thought I was trapped in a time loop that would have me work on tasks for the rest of my life and maybe even after my death. Maybe I just died because of all of this and this was going to be my afterlife. At least I had a hot teacher to look at and Christa would be with me still.

I was brought back to reality when the bell suddenly rang, and the others started packing up their stuff. So, did I. A huge crowd was building up at the teacher’s desk because everyone had to grab their tests before they could leave the class. _Wait, did he actually correct all of the test we had just written an hour ago? This shrimp really was on another level._

When the class finally emptied I stood in front of his desk but he just wouldn't give me the papers back, he gave everyone left their tests except for me so I hissed and just walked towards the door without my test.

" Miss Y/L/N, you don't have your test back so I would appreciate if you stayed in the room. Actually, I need to talk to you in private so please stay here a little longer.", he addressed at me all self-absorbed. " Miss Lenz you can go; this will take a while and I don't want you to waste your break waiting for her.". Christa and I shared the same wide-eyed stare as this morning. He actually knew the names of the students; he was just too proud to use them, so he treated them like shit to keep his authority and seemed out of reach.

As the class was finally empty it was only him and I left in the room. I leaned against one of the tables whilst he walked up to the door and closed it. _What the fuck was all of this about?_

"I am very concerned about you Miss Y/L/N.", he consoled with a whole lot of fake compassion. He walked to his desk again and took the papers, then he reached them out to me. I grabbed them and looked at him nauseous. My eyes wandered over the papers and I had failed both of them, although the vocabulary test was closer to passing than the one from yesterday. I even had zero points at some of the grammar exercises.

"As you see your output is horrible, that's why I wanted you to stay after class. You got an F on both on the tests, what grades did you get from your former English teacher?", he walked up and down in front of the blackboard like a big cat in a cage. He walked slowly, but not as if he were about to fall asleep and he carefully placed one foot in front of the other over and over.

"Erg, I mostly got a B+, a B or sometimes even an A-."

"And how on earth did you do that? Did you just forget everything you ever learned?", he turned right in front of me to face me, his eyebrows narrowed and frowning.

"I-I guess the teacher was nicer", I stuttered. He was quite scary now that he was so near. I could even smell his fragrance or was that only his cologne. Whatever it was it made my nose itch a bit and my body started to feel all tingly. I really loved the smell of a good cologne as well as the smell that shampoo for men had, it just made me feel like something was ignited inside of me and started to burn me down from the inside.

"So, you think I'm not nice?", he sniffed once teasingly, "Or were you just 'very nice' to your old teacher?".

Did he just imply that I was sleeping with Mrs. Byrne? That woman was a dinosaur, my teacher and so not my type.

"I heard about the things they say about you and if I look at you, I understand why they say these things about you. You show yourself like the girls that are working on the streets late at night and now you even hide your face behind makeup. Are you that ugly?".

_I swear if he insults me one more time I am about to snap right at his face._

"What's with that look? Do you realize that I'm right or are you just thinking about the next move you're gonna make to seduce me? Well jokes on you I am not into sluts, even if they're young. I don't like to chew gum that was in the mouth of the whole school and maybe even more. Your poor boyfriend, I really don't get what it is about you that makes him want to be in a relationship with you.".

That was it. I had reached my limit and I was so furious that I just grabbed him by his collar und brought him up to my face. "You know what you little shit, you don't know a thing about me. You are just like all the others although you pretend to be so omniscient. Believing everything that someone tells you? Doesn't sound so smart to me. And insulting a student based on rumors and a first impression? You really are the one to pity. And only for your information, I didn't fuck, finger, lick or whatever you had in mind I did with Mrs. Byrne, she was simply a nice old lady that understood that I just wasn't good at English but she included my effort in her grading.", I had completely lost control over my actions and was so impulsive that I just did what I did.

Then something I would have never expected in a million years happened. That asshole just grinned and as soon as I realized what just happened and when I loosened my grip on his collar, he grabbed my tie pulling me down to face him and he was pulling me so deep I even had to look up to that twink.

"You really are something, aren't you? Well now that you had time to share your side of this, I would like to tell you something. I am not a nice teacher if you think a nice teacher has to be a soft person that has standards so low that you wouldn't even see them if you took off those shoes that make you seem taller but it is only one more thing showing how fake you are."

"It's not like I wear them every day", I disrupted him while he made a short pause.

He pulled on my tie a bit more, "Didn't I just say that I was about to tell you something? This means I talk, you listen, just the normal student teacher relationship. Continuing where I left, I might not be nice in that way but I'm so nice that I help you graduate and find a job. Do you really think that it would be only Mrs. Byrne correcting your finals? Every other teacher would easily see how much you suck at all of this and even if a wonder happened and you graduated, do you think anyone would employ you? They would laugh at you as soon as they'd read your application. I am just honest, if you can't accept the reality that's not my problem but one thing is for sure, I'm going to bring you down to earth again. Don't you think I noticed how you spaced out when you were supposed to do the tasks, I gave you? You really are a disappointment.".

 _Did he keep an eye on me during class, what a creep? But still he was right after all._ I hated that he could read me that well and it was even worse that he wanted me to snap only to bring me down when I was at my highest. I kind of felt bad. His every word had hit me right where it hurt.

"I noticed that you tried to do better on the test today, that's why you were so careless when writing the tasks on the blackboard and maybe it was a bit mean that I had you starting later than everyone else, but still you could fill out the whole sheet and at the end your answers were mostly correct, but that wasn't enough still."

_At least he was admitting his mistake. I really wanted to kick him right where it hurt, he definitely targeted me, but if it was really only to help me get a better grade?_

"You didn't take it serious enough when you were studying, take out your notes", he commanded and loosened the grip on my tie so I could reach my bag. I took out the notes that were all wrinkled because I had slept on them, but at least I took notes.

He just shook his head. "That is what you learn with?"

"I fell asleep while studying", I tried to defend myself.

"Do you think I care about that? It's not only that the paper is all wrinkled, you didn't properly write them down and they were stored in your exercise book. If I see something like that when I start the real teaching you're going to be in real trouble. And don't you dare to not take notes, I will beat you, I swear. And now stop wanting to be or pretending to be someone you're not. I don't know whether these rumors are true or not, if I would have to guess I'd say most of them are false. I mean I know for sure that you didn't have an affair with me or Erwin, I mean Mr. Smith so the people are lying about that for sure. I don't care what you waste your time on as long as you have decent grades.", after he said it was the first time that his facial expression softened a bit. Just as I thought he would break down his unapproachable facade, he took his thumb and dragged it over my lips, smearing the lipstick over my face. "Take it off now", he commanded again. How was I supposed to do that when I am in school? The paper towels feel like sandpaper and I will not use them on my face that is for sure.

I was just about to turn around to yell at him when I saw him holding out a box with cleansing wipes. I was a bit confused why he would have these with him, but I took them gratefully and took off my makeup, although it was only the lipstick and my eyeliner. When I was finished and had thrown away the wipes, I washed my hands and turned towards him.

"I told you to take off all of your makeup", he growled at me without really looking up because he was sanitizing his hands after he cleaned them from the lipstick that had been sticking to his thumb.

"That's what I did", I answered him, "May I go now?". My ego was a bit hurt, but I was quite respectful towards teachers, what happened before was my reaction to him provoking me.

He looked up and stared straight at my face, then he walked up to me again, causing me to back off a bit. "Not that brave anymore. Don't worry, I won't make a move on you, for the third time. God you really need to remember the things I'm telling you or I will have to repeat myself over and over until I can't listen to it myself anymore.". He just grabbed my tie and loosened it. Just then I realized how short on breath I was because it had been so tight around my throat and I immediately took a deep breath.

"I hope you remember my words and don't forget to finish the tasks and learn your vocabularies. I want you to show me your notes at the end of the next lesson. You are now dismissed.", he waved me off with one hand, using the other one to pack his briefcase.

He was still an asshole but at least I understood his actions now that I knew his intentions. Although I was not quite sure about that one still, he was definitely blushing a tiny little bit when I had taken off my makeup and I could bet he checked me out already without me noticing. _Waah, what am I even thinking?_ If he was really checking me out, he was only another one of the puppies that were sobbing as soon as they saw me, but he was better at hiding it.

One was for sure; I would remember his words from now on.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And yet another chapter is finished. I am really working through the night to publish these as soon as possible and I would be really grateful for some comments and your opinions on my fanfiction.  
> ~ Firefly_606


	5. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Y/H/C : Your hair color  
> Also: the recipes that are described are all real recipes ^^

My tie was still hanging around my neck loosely as I stepped outside of the classroom. The break was almost over but I still decided to walk downstairs meeting the others at our spot. I threw my bag over one shoulder and took off my tie while walking downstairs so I could fix it again. Thinking about it that was not the smartest thing to do while walking stairs in boots with heels as high as the ones I was wearing because I almost tripped multiple times and was about to either break my legs by falling down or choking myself with the tie. So, I decided to stop halfway and took off the tie carrying it in my hand until I got outside.

The others had spent their break outside as usual and I could see their questioning looks on their faces when I got outside. Without saying a word, I just put on the tie again.

"You really come here looking like that after spending almost the whole break with Mr. Ackerman and you don't even say a word? How dare you, I want to know what happened and where is your make up?", Christa scoffed at me furiously.

"What do you want me to tell you?", I asked her not realizing how all of this looked like.

"Did you just make out with him or not?", she stepped nearer to me whispering in my ear so only I could hear it, "Was it like these teacher and student fanfictions where he slams you against the wall and starts kissing you wildly?"

I just burst out in laughter, "Your imagination is going way too wild on that one. Actually, it was really depressing. He scolded me because I was the worst student in both tests and he messed with me for dressing like this so he requested me to take off my makeup and since he had cleaning wipes with him, I don't know why he had these tho, I did him the favor.".

She simply nodded.

"And what was with the tie?", Ymir chimed in raising an eyebrow.

"Oh, it was just a bit too tight, so I wanted to loosen it and then the knot got too lose and I had to put it on again.". It was not exactly what happened, but it was not a lie. It was all true, I just left out the details.

Then the bell went off. It really saved me because I did not want to answer any more of their questions. I bet Reiner was mad at me again. I could tell from his facial expressions but honestly, I knew he would never break up with me if I did not do anything too crazy that was provable. It is always like that. He gets angry but he never shows. My theory is that he is afraid of us having a serious fight about something as little as one of these rumors, but I can only guess since he does not want to talk about anything like this.

So, I did not bother about it much longer and went to gym class, my last class for today. After that it meant two and a half days of rest and freedom from this tower that we were locked in until graduation. We were our own knights; it was just that the time we spent waiting for our knight in shining armor to save us seemed way too long sometimes.

After gym class I rushed to the bus stop, took the bus home, and didn't waste a second to get to our house.

When I opened the door, I screamed "I'm home." and closed it behind me again. Then I did my routine of taking my shoes and my jacket off, same old same old but instead of running upstairs to get to my room I took my bag and placed it on the floor in our dinner room, right next to the chair I sat down on. Our house was quite big and had modern interior, but it seemed just like a hospital. The walls were plain white, and the floor was covered in white tiles which were reflecting the sunlight that came through the window. My mom cleaned them at least every two days, so they were always clean. The table had was made out of light marble and had a glass top that only showed some prints of Sam's paws, she must have climbed onto it and walked all over it because clear trail of her little mittens could be seen. The chairs were in a light gray tone and made out of fake leather and had legs made out of shiny silver metal.

I took out my notes from English class and laid them on the table to copy them once again but this time properly, also I had to add the new vocabularies so I took my book out as well. I wanted to see through them while I had lunch, so I went to the kitchen after I had everything sorted on the table. The kitchen was openly connected to the dining room and in the same color scheme as the whole house, guess that is what you get when both your parents are doctors that love their job. There was a kitchen isle between the actual kitchen and the dining room which my parents and I sometimes sat on in the evening when my dad made us some non-alcoholic cocktails. The stools there were in the same design as our chairs, but for some reason they seemed way more comfortable, maybe it was because it was always fun when we sat here. My parents do not have anything against me drinking alcohol, although they don't drink because they could get a call from work any minute. They knew that they could trust me and therefore I was allowed to drink, better do it with them knowing it than drinking behind their backs and ending up intoxicated one day.

As I opened the fridge thinking about what I would have for lunch a creak from the hallway could be heard and soon after that I recognized that my dad was home already from the sound of his steps only. He stepped through the doorframe of the dining room since I had left the door open. His coat laid over his arm and in the other hand he had his briefcase, of course he had already taken off his shoes. While draping his coat over the back of one of the chairs he greeted me with a calm yet caring voice, "Y/N, how was your day?". He turned around and saw me taking some food out of the fridge. "Oh, you're cooking. What is on the menu today, chef?".

I chuckled once and closed the door of the fridge again. "I thought about making some sweet potato fries with fried vegetables and a guacamole as a dip.", I declared while taking out a knife and a board to cut the sweet potatoes and the vegetables. "Sounds delicious, do you mind making a portion for me too?", he asked while looking at the papers that were scattered on the table. "Sure, I don't mind", so I took the food I needed and started washing everything before starting to peel the sweet potatoes. "What's all that here on the table?", he asked. "Just some of my notes for school and my exercise book", I answered, cutting the sweet potatoes into small stripes that were about the same size. "Do you mind me taking a look at those, I wonder if they still teach the same things they used to when I was in school". I simply nodded and concentrated on the sweet potatoes. Then I put them in a bowl, poured a bit of olive oil over them so that everything was covered but not drenched in oil. After that I used some spices, seasoned the fries, and put them in the hot air fryer on 170 degrees Celsius and concentrated on the vegetables. I cut an onion into little cubes and put these in the pan that I had taken out before and where was already a sip of olive oil inside. The onions started sizzling on low temperature. While they were getting fried, I cut two peppers, a red and a green one, half a zucchini, a few mushrooms, and a bit spinach. Then I took a spoon of the fried onions and put them into a separate bowl, which was for the guacamole, and added the other vegetables to the pan.

When I took out the avocados for the guacamole my dad suddenly stood at the kitchen isle, leaning on it with one arm and holding some papers in the other hand. "What's up with these tests?". I looked at him confused until I realized what he was talking about. I sighed and continued to take a tomato, a jalapeno, and a lime out of the fridge. While cutting the tomato in little cubes I explained what this was all about, "We have a new substitute, well now he is our substitute but next year he'll be our real teacher, for class and he started the first day with a test and the second day he had us write another one and he grades different than Mrs. Byrne so I guess I'll have to work harder on it now.". I added the tomato to the bowl, peeled the avocados and cut them in halves, added some smashed garlic and seasoned it with salt, pepper and coriander. Then I squeezed the lime until the lime juice started dripping in the bowl to the other ingredients. Everything in the bowl went into the mixer and got shredded into a tasty guacamole.

"School is really on another level these these days.", he took the tests back to the table and laid them down. Then he walked to the kitchen and took out the cutlery to place it on the table, took out two porcelain plates and placed them next to where I was cooking. "Thanks.", I took the sweet potato fries after about fifteen minutes out, when they were done. The vegetables were frying on low heat, so they were done but still getting heated. I put a portion for us on each plate and carried them to the table. "Do you want something to drink?", I asked my dad. "Can you brew me a cup of tea?". I nodded and filled the teapot with water, put it on the stove plate and took out two cups in which I hung a bag of white tea. After filling both mugs with boiling water I went back to the table and sat down to eat. We did not talk while eating. My dad was on his phone reading some news articles on the internet and I had my eyes glued to my notes.

When we had finished eating each of us tool the dirty dishes and put them in the dishwasher. I quickly cleaned everything I had used for cooking, grabbed my papers for school that were laying on the table and ran upstairs, where I threw my bag in the next corner and the sheets of paper in my bed.

The evening went by pretty fast and similar to the last one as I spent it with writing notes, studying for school and other homework. In the meantime, I heard my dad making some calls, so it was better to stay in my room either way. My dad was quite the calm person, but he was also a professional when it came to his work, just like my mom. Whenever he made calls he preferably went to a room where he was alone, so I did not want to chase him out of the dining room. A little while later I could hear nothing but silence from downstairs, so I went outside my room to get myself a bottle of water before going to bed. As I filled the bottle with water from the tape my dad chimed in "Your mom called and asked whether you could make lunch tomorrow too, she is unsure if she will make it in time to eat with us, because she got an emergency patient who has to be operated tomorrow.". "Sure, what would you like to eat?", I confirmed his request. "How about you make your Thai curry? That would be really great, and we can eat it for more than one day.". I nodded and headed to to my room again, changing into my pajamas which was basically a t-shirt that is way too big for me and some really short shorts and went to bed.

The next day I woke up around 12 o'clock, which was not abnormal since it was Saturday and not that bad since the party wouldn't start before 7 pm. The only problem I could have would be that it took some time to cook, but I guess my parents would have to wait. I mean they asked me to cook and they knew that I got up late on the weekend unless there was something important scheduled.

I got out of bed and brushed my Y/H/C Hair out of my face and put it in a low messy bun. Then I walked to the bathroom using mouthwash and brushing my teeth afterwards. Then I walked downstairs to the kitchen. My parents sat at the table and talked about something related to a party that an old friend from medical school was throwing. My mom always brews a cup of tea for me when she heard that I was awake, so I sat down next to them sipping my tea. "Morning.", I said with a raspy voice and burned my tongue on the tea. "Good Morning. Be careful, I just made the tea it could still be hot", my mother replied. "Yeah, I felt that.", I put the mug on the table to let it cool down a little. "I'm gonna start cooking the curry now, is that okay with you?", I asked standing up from the chair again. "No problem with that", my dad said, and my mother added, "I think I'm gonna head to the hospital now". Then she gave my dad a hug and kissed him before she went upstairs to get her bag.

I walked over to the sink to wash my hands before getting everything I needed. I took two red bell peppers, two carrots, three zucchinis, three green onions, garlic and one normal onion out of the fridge and placed them on the counter. Then I gathered two cans of coconut milk, chili paste, salt, pepper, and a big pot which I put on the stove plate. I began by cutting all the vegetables in stripes and put them in the pot. Then I squeezed the garlic into the pot and let all of it fry for a few minutes. While the vegetables were sizzling on the ground of the pot, I took out the rice cooker, grabbed the bowl that comes with it and filled it with rice until the ground was covered and a little more. The rice was being rinsed with water and then put back in the rice cooker and everything switched on. When I had finished that I went back to the vegetables and added the coconut milk which gave it a soup like consistence but still quite creamy. And at the very last I added about one and a half table spoons of the curry paste and to put the finishing touches I seasoned it, put the lid on the pot. All of this took me about two hours since I took my time and had music on, so that got my attention sometimes. I put the curry on a very low flame so nothing could burn, and the rice cooker would turn off on its own.

As I was about to walk upstairs to go take a shower my dad looked at me apologetic, scratching his neck "Oh, seems like I forgot to tell you, your new teacher will join us for lunch in about half an hour, so you should hurry to get ready.". "WHAT?", it just blurted out of me, "Why would he do that? I mean why is he doing that?". "I called Mr. Smith yesterday, I didn't think that it was fair to have you getting lower grades just because of a new teacher so I wanted to talk to him, but he didn't want to give out his number just like that so I suggested that he could come over to eat with us and we'll talk about everything and he agreed to it.", he smiled sheepishly. My dad was such a pure soul, but he could be such a dork when he did not have to act all serious, it even got annoying. "And since when do you know that?", I asked quickly because I obviously had to get into the shower now and hurry. "Since yesterday around seven o'clock in the evening. But I promise it won't end bad for you, if only it will help you in school. Maybe the two of you will get along really well, who knows. And you know Y/N I couldn't have told you that he'd come over or you wouldn't have agreed to cook today.". "Does mom know about this?", I asked him. "Yes, but you should really hurry now, your hair looks kinda greasy.", he teased me.

I let out a sigh as I almost flew upstairs, rushed to the bathroom, and slammed the door behind me. Before I undressed, I started filling the bathtub with water so it would fill more quickly. I got inside and removed the hair tie before I got underwater to wash my hair. There were only about 20 minutes left when I had finished washing my body and my hair, so I had to hurry while shaving. Regardless I did not want to cut myself so I figured that i would take my time for that especially at some zones of my body. _Why was I in a hurry anyways? It was not like I was too excited for the lunch and if I came downstairs late my dad will have to explain it, at least it was his fault. And he would have the chance to see the real face of that Gnome. On the other hand, the hobbit could tell him about the rumors at school or worse, they could get along well. THEY COULD GET ALONG WELL?! If they become friends that would mean I would have to see him even more than usual and who in the world would want that._ Drowning in my thoughts and with anger rising inside me I got careless and accidentally cut right on top of my right thigh. It stung a little bit, but I still had to get ready, so I just went on without paying any attention to it. When I had finished everything, I jumped out of the bathtub drying my wet body with a towel. As it was fairly dry, I wrapped the towel around my body and ran to my room taking out comfortable black lingerie that had lace on it. Then I practically grabbed all of my pants and threw them on my bed to search for the one I would wear tonight. They were some high waisted black cargo pants with zippers and an urban belt. On my upper body I put on a white crop top which was not see through and on top of it I wore a cropped black hoodie which ended right above my chest and only left the hood, the sleeves and the chain which was attached to a ring that got sewed in at the front and one at the back.

Then when I had only put on a pair of black socks and was about to tie the laces of my sneakers that I wore inside only, the doorbell rang, and my blood froze.

I ran back to the bathroom to bring the towel back and put a conditioning after treatment on my hair. At that time, I only put the hood over my wet and messy hair so that it could dry on itself. My face was still a bit red tinted from all the steam, but I still went downstairs. I had to stop them from getting along well before the situation got any worse.


	6. Chapter 5

That moment when I stood on top of the stairs ready to go downstairs I could see him already while he took off his large black coat that was not really thick so it wasn't warm but rather a really stylish coat that fit the rest of his outfit. He looked even younger, and hotter, in the loose white t-shirt that was tucked in his black jeans which complimented his muscular thighs and were a little bit loose at the knees. Right in the middle he had a shiny black belt with a silver belt-buckle that fit the whole outfit and kept it simple yet added a little bit of sass to it. _Did that twink really discover a sense for fashion overnight?_

"Hello Mr. Ackerman, I'm Y/Ns' father, nice to meet you. I need to ask you to take your shoes off, we even have some slippers for the guests if you'd like.", my father greeted him after he invited him inside.

"No, thank you, I prefer to stay in socks only then", Mr. Ackerman replied. "We also do have a cat so I hope this doesn't cause any trouble. You are not allergic to cat hair or are scared afraid of cats, are you?", my dad asked. He was just too nice, best would be he was allergic to cat hair and his dumb face would swell to the size of a melon. I don't want him here. This is my house. My safe space. He has literally no business coming here. Why couldn't he just have declined this lunch with my dad? "No, it's no problem.", he answered with his straight face as usual.

I walked downstairs glaring at him until I stood next to my father. To keep my image as the perfect daughter I had a wide smile all over my face. "Hello Mr. Ackerman, nice to see you.", I said in the same sweet voice that I used when I saw him the first time. The three of us walked to the dining room and while my father and the Jockey sat down to talk a bit I walked over to the kitchen. "Y/N, can you lay the table and prepare everything so we can start with the lunch?", my father asked. I nodded and added "How about something to drink? Mr. Ackerman, what would you like to drink?".

He looked a bit surprised, at least I think I could tell that he looked a bit surprise, but you can never be sure what that mini fridge is trying to express by his countenance. Before he replied he cleared his throat, "I'd like a simple water from the tap.". I nodded and looked towards my father, "tea?", and he simply replied, "As always.". Having said this, I filled the teapot with water for the both of us when Mr. Ackerman appealed more quiet than before, "Actually, I'd like a tea too. Do you have black tea?". I continued to fill the teapot with water that would fill three cups. "Alright", I simply replied and took three plates out of the cupboard, placed them on the counter and opened the rice cooker to put a small rice ball on each one. Then, after I had closed the rice cooker again, I took the pot lid, let the condensed water drip down into the curry and placed it also on the counter to take a ladle out of a drawer. First I stirred the curry a bit before taking a portion which was beautifully arranged around the rice and repeating this for the other two plates. When the tea was finished I carried everything to the table where my father and Mr. Ackerman had been talking while I was busy.

Mr. Ackerman didn't look too excited about anything when I placed the plate in front of him. My look wandered from him to my dad. His expression was still quite pleasing so they didn't talk about anything concerning me or at least nothing that would cause me trouble. Once we started to eat the room was filled with silence. Only the sound of us chewing and the metal on the porcelain plates could be heard until we finished. One thing that caught my attention was when Mr. Ackerman grabbed the mug to take a sip from the tea. The way he held the mug was hilarious. He didn't grab it by the handle instead he hovered his whole hand over the cup and grabbed it on the rim before lifting it from the table. He must have noticed me when I looked at him amused because he glared at me.

After Lunch I put the dishes in the dishwasher and sat down again, but my father simply looked at me and requested, "Y/N, could you please go upstairs. I think we'll have to discuss a few things and it would be best if you'd not listen to that.".

That was exactly the opposite of what I wanted to do, but I couldn't answer back so I nodded and went upstairs. I couldn't hear what they were talking about so I spent my time distracting myself by watching a series on Netflix. If I couldn't hear them then I wouldn't want to think about what they could be talking about.

The time flew by and the next time I looked at the time displayed on my mobile phone it was already twenty past six. I quickly brushed my hair once, grabbed a bag and gathered my toiletries and a few clothes for the next day in case I stayed over at Mikasa's. Then I ran downstairs, putting on some black sneakers. I thought of wearing my heels but if I got a little too tipsy later they would still be pretty but quite dangerous. As I was just about to grab the door handle for the dining room to inform my father that I was leaving now the door was opened and in front of me stood the Oompa Loompa. I stepped aside and he walked out of the door with my dad following him. His mood didn't seem to have changed very much which made me a bit nosy what they were talking about besides the tests.

"Y/N is something wrong?", he asked. "I just wanted to say that I'll be leaving now. If I don't come home tonight, I'll be staying over but I'll text you about that so don't worry.", I replied. In the meantime Mr. Ackerman had put on his shoes and his coat. "It was nice to meet you Mr. Y/L/N, maybe we could repeat this even without a reason. I would also like to meet your wife one day", Mr. Ackerman said. "We have to meet again. Thank you for coming over today. Have a nice day.", he directed towards Mr. Ackerman, "And you have fun, but not too much", he told me while making eye contact.

Together with Mr. Ackerman I left the house expecting him to sit down in a luxurious black car and drive off but he kept walking besides me. It was a bit confusing since he didn't even say a word so I figured that I should start a conversation. It couldn't get weirder than everything that happend today.

"Do you live nearby", I asked without looking at him. Despite that I tried to loosen the tense atmosphere that was around us it was still quite strange that we were walking side by side. "It only takes about half an hour to get home, so I guess you could say so.", he answered monotonous. Then we were in silence again. As I was just about to say something he cut me off right away. "You don't have to talk to me if it makes you uncomfortable. And if you're curious to know what I said to your father, you don't have to worry. I told him about the same things that I told you before, just a little nicer. You are having trouble memorizing the vocabulary and grammar rules, that I will try my best to help you with it and that the test probably caught you off guard. Now quit the acting and be silent. I don't like talking to dishonest people and I won't. It's inexplicable to me how you and your father can be so different.". I gave my attention to what he said without looking at him until he had finished. _Were these his honest thoughts? Was I only a fake in his eyes? I can't stress it enough but who does he think he is, damn shrimp._

"You really think you know someone just by looking at them don't you?", was everything I could reply to that. "When you get older you gain experience and you develop a feeling for people, maybe you'll get that one day". "Maybe you'll get it one day that you are not always right. There is always more to people which you can't see.". "Of course there is more to people but all I'm saying is that a first impression can tell a lot about a person. Whether I'm right or not it doesn't matter anyway, people are not an important part of my life.", having this said he looked at me, "Where are you going?". He had me startled with this abrupt change of the topic. I had a dumbfounded look on my face and he had noticed that. "If you don't want to tell me it's alright, but you could at least say it then and not look like you just saw a ghost.". I shook my head for a quick moment and cleared my mind. "I'm about to go to a friend's party.", I answered not looking at him. It was quite shameful that he had me stumble over my thoughts that easy. Why were my thoughts always wandering off into nowhere when he was around. It was hideous especially during class. The only reaction Mr. Ackerman showed was an unsophisticated nod.

And again we were walking next to each other not saying a word and this time I didn't even bother trying to start a conversation. It was senseless like talking to a wall but even worse. The wall had the excuse that it wasn't able to talk back while he chose not to. Every word he said was like he was spitting fire at the person he was talking to. The only exception I had witnessed was when he talked to Mr. Smith.

We kept walking like this until I could finally escape this hell. Mikasa's house was located on the street after turning left so I had to cross the road. "I need to cross the road here. I wish you a nice weekend and I apologize for the inconvenience my father has caused.", I informed him before walking to the other side of the street. "I hope you have a good weekend too.", he ended and simply continued walking until he stopped and turned around to add something loud enough I could hear it, "It is also really pleasing to see that you took my words into consideration.".

I was too slow when I turned around because he was already continuing to walk away and I was unable to see his facial expression. From the way he sounded while saying this I pictured him with a mischievous smirk all over his face. Although he probably kept a straight face. His voice sounded somewhat proud and all over himself which he probably was because I had no clue what he meant with this. I was left alone with a puzzled look and I was glad that he had kept walking because otherwise he would have seen my dumbfounded face and be amused on top of his self-absorbed state that he was constantly in and I bet he wouldn't even tell me so he could be even more amused by it.

I shook my head once and focused on the party again. Mr. Ackerman might have gotten on my mind before but this evening was not about him or school or anything but partying.


	7. Chapter 6

I moved on as fast as I could. The way I know my friends they were probably already starting as soon as the first ones arrived. With this in mind I fastened my pace and not soon after I stood in front of the door of Mikasa's house. Loud music could already be heard from the inside so I texted her that I stood in front of the door. Ringing the doorbell would have been a waste of time.

Only a few seconds after the message was marked as read Mikasa stood in front of the door and opened it. Her deeply black hair rested on her shoulders as she greeted me with a small smile. Mikasa has never been good at expressing how she feels about others or a situation but we all knew that she tried her best at all times.

"Hey, you're here. Come on in, the others are in the back yard.", she said firmly but it had a soft tone to it. Although she acted quite normal I could tell that they had already started to drink from the way she talked to me. It made me smile for a quick second. "Hey, I've been waiting for this evening all week. Who else is here already", I stepped inside and made my way through the house with Mikasa besides me. "Well, Eren came over this morning and has been here since then and half an hour ago Jean, Sasha, Annie, Marco and Ymir arrived.". Loud talking and laughing was coming from outside and as we got to the others we were greeted by the others. Annie and Jean were already drinking and it seemed that they had a contest going on as usual. They mostly fight over some dumb stuff and get caught up in their own world to beat each other. Marco sat next to Jean and watched them while Sasha ate the last piece of pizza that was left.

"Hey Y/N, nice to see you here.", Sasha chortled while chewing, then she looked past me to Mikasa, "When is the next pizza done?". "What do you mean when is the next one done? I just got one out of the oven right before Y/N came.", Mikasa answered. "Well, how should I put it ...", Sasha smiled widely and Mikasa ended her sentence " You ate it?". Sasha nodded sheepishly and Mikasa could only shake her head, "Fine, I'll put the next one in the oven but leave something for the others this time". Then she went back inside. I was left with the others and sat down next to Annie. It was not until later when I should have realized that this was one of the worst mistakes I did this night. Definitely not the worst, but the first one. As soon as I was sitting next to her, she and Jean stopped their booze-up and both looked at me. " Hey, Y/N why don't you share a drink with us?", Jean babbled. A slight smell of alcohol came from him and from the bottles that were either empty or already opened up it was no surprise.“You guys know that I am not that much of a drinker and especially not on an empty stomach”, I declined but they were pretty insistent. Annie kept nagging me and persuaded me at the end when she suggested that the three of us should play a round of truth or dare.

Jean set the rules, “If someone does not want to answer a truth it’s one shot, if it is a dare it’s five shots, got it?”. They were insane and I knew that they were way more safe to drink than me but nevertheless I decided to play with them. This week had me in so much stress that I didn’t care about it anymore. If I ended up drunk and knocked out my parents knew that I’d stay over at Mikasa’s and that would be absolutely fine. “Then let’s start. Y/N, truth or dare?”, Jean asked. It was obvious that they would target me because I was the only sober one left. “Truth”, I replied. “Boring”, Annie chimed in but Jean cut in line, “Leave her be, it’s only the first round so chill”. Annie glared at him but got over it soon enough. “A truth it is. So, tell us Y/N, with all these rumors going around, how far have you ever gone with a guy or a girl? We don’t judge.”. Well and there it was, the first question and I didn’t feel like answering it. How could I tell them that the furthest I ever went was a French kiss with Christa when we were both drunk. I hid the truth behind a poker face and smiled widely, “You’d love to know that one wouldn’t you?”, I teased them and poured myself a vodka shot, drinking it immediately. “As I said, boring”, Annie kept complaining, “It’s no fun playing with her, she won’t do anything too crazy, trust me.”. "Okay, then give me a good one next time. So what is it for you, truth or dare?", I mocked her. It was Annie so I was pretty sure that she'd take Dare and of course she did. Otherwise she'd disagree with what she said just a moment before. "Then start doing something less boring and make out with Marco.". It was nothing of a big deal since we were all friends but I thought that it would put her in a better mood since Annie is one of the girls that would rather not get too close with the boys especially because we're all friends and it could destroy that friendship. That moment the thought of me and Reiner came to my mind and I realized that it could exactly like that if I broke up with him.

Annie shook her head while she chuckled under her breath, "so that's how you want to play this?". She stood up and sat down next to Marco and without flinching she forced herself on him. It was a rather sad sight and I did feel a little bit sorry for Marco but at least Annie fulfilled her dare. The thought that came to my mind earlier was now constantly floating around in my head. At that moment I didn't want to deal with it and honestly I don't think that there will ever be a time when I would want to think about something like this. The only solution for my problem was to get drunk as quickly as I could. Therefore I grabbed one of the open liquor bottles and poured myself some shots which I drank right away.

"Woah, Y/N slow sown. What's the matter?", Jean asked a little in shock. "Nothing, I just want to have a good night.", I replied with a dry voice. The alcohol made my throat really itchy and since it did not work immediately I could still feel the remains of it as it passed down into my system. It didn't taste as good as I remembered it, but I figured that it would change as time went by. While Jean and I kept drinking Annie finished her make-out session with Marco. She got up leaving the poor guy startled but not really disappointed where he was and sat down on her old place. "Hey! Suckers why are you emptying the bottles without me?", she fumed at us as she saw that we almost drained two bottles. We just looked at each other and than at Annie not saying a word. Honestly I didn't even know what would've been better, to stay quiet or to say something, but we just stared at her obliviously. "What? Are you just going to keep staring at me? Pour me a shot too or do you want to drink all of this on your own?", she demanded and Jean did as she asked, "Now it's your turn again Y/N and since you already bailed on truth you have to do a dare and my dare is that you have to spend at least fifteen minutes alone with the next person that arrives here. It doesn't have to be right now, just sometime this evening.". Annie had a devilish smirk on her face. "Alright.", my answer was a little too self-assured because my confidence was only present because right now nobody walked through that door. Slowly but gradual the alcohol started to kick in, especially since I hadn't eaten anything until now. "Finally this game starts to gain my interest", Annie said and I could see how Marco looked at her a little startled, almost hurt. That poor guy got dragged into the games of Jean and Annie pretty often and now I played with him too. Just as I was deep in my own thoughts feeling sorry for Marco, Mikasa came with a fresh pizza that came right out of the oven. "Sorry guys, but I'm out. Have fun you two maybe you'll finde someone else who is insane or drunk enough to play with you.", I told them as I stood up to get a few slices of pizza. "But your dare is still going on, I'll keep an eye on you!", Annie almost yelled at me and I simply nodded as I grabbed a slice from the plate and swallowed it in a few bites which was not the smartest idea I had that evening but it was better than many others that were to come. Mikasa handed me the plate as the doorbell rang and went to open the door. Left alone with the pizza I devoured a few more slices and almost choked as I saw who entered. Mikasa talked to him a little in the house, then she came to the back yard and introduced him to us. "Guys, that's my cousin. He'll stay here a little to keep an eye on us for my parents but he won't disturb us.". I had to cough loudly because of the hot piece of pizza that was stuck in my throat, which caused the others looking at me. "Is everything alright Y/N?", Christa asked, obviously a little shocked to see our English teacher standing here. I waved with my hand trying to signalize her that everything was alright, "Yes", I coughed, "the pizza was just a little too hot.". Mr. Ackerman looked at me with the motionless gaze that he always had.

 _Of course. Of course he over all the people who could be related to Mikasa, he, that damn tiny little pipsqueak was her cousin. And of course I had to choke on something the moment he comes in._ For a moment I was distracted by Annie who kept tapping on my shoulder with a grin that could compete with the Cheshire Cat. "What?", I asked in a noticeable moody tone. "I just wanted to remind you of your dare again.", she chortled pleased. I only rolled my eyes to shake the fear off that was overcoming me and sent a few shivers down my spine. _Nice, now I got that on top of everything else. I can only hope that the alcohol will do its job._ My body felt as if my soul had left it. I felt cold and empty and that's probably how I looked because I simply sat there staring into the abyss. The first thing that caught my attention after doing literally nothing for a while was when the other boys arrived. They walked around the house not even trying to ring the doorbell and that just made me realize that the music was even louder than before. Connie and Bertolt were carrying a beer crate and Rainer held a bottle of red wine and something else that could be any of the bottles that Annie and Jean were drinking from and since they came with bags they probably had even more in there. Armin was walking in the back and from what I could see he held some bags of chips so he probably brought some more snacks. "Hey Guys, how are you? You can put the bottles on the table and the snacks inside, I'll put them in some bowls later", Mikasa greeted them as they walked by. Rainer came to me as I was still a little puzzled and now also a little dizzy from the alcohol. He kissed me on the cheek and smiled widely, "Hey babe, I brought something for you", he declared and placed the red wine in front of me on the table. "Thanks, I'm glad to see you", I answered. From only looking at the wine I could already feel the headache that I would probably have the next morning. Mr. Ackerman on the other hand went inside and vanished from my field of view and I could catch myself wondering what he could be doing.

Nevertheless I still drank the glass of wine that Rainer poured me when he came back outside, after placing his bag inside. He unscrewed the cork and filled my glass which was originally there to be filled with some soft drink so I could cover the taste of the liquor with something more sweet. The wine did not taste bad at all and it was not too dry so it made it way easier to chug the it down. In my current state it was not that obvious to me that Rainer was trying to get me intoxicated to a point where I was not in my right mind anymore so I spent the next thirty minutes drinking nonstop because he kept refilling my glass as soon as it was nearly emptied until the bottle was completely empty. My view got pretty blurry within a few seconds and I could feel the alcohol kicking in even more than before. On top of that Rainer seemed to have noticed that and kept coming closer and closer. At some point I was able to smell his fragrance and it almost made me gag. The smell of alcohol around me combined with the smell of sweat and a cheap deodorant made me want to flee out of this situation even more.

Just as Rainer was about to out his arm around my waist I put myself up and rushed inside to get a glass of water. From the kitchen I could catch a slight glimpse of Rainer talking to Christa who noticed me watching them. With a questioning look she pierced me with her eyes and I started shaking my head hastily while brushing the back of my hand underneath my chin to signalize her that I was not in the mood to deal with him right now or with anyone. Then I chugged down a glass of water which felt really good but did not clear my view completely. Due to Rainer not coming after me I figured that Christa handled everything but when I wanted to check on them once again from the kitchen she was busy sticking her tongue down Ymir's throat. It was not unusual for them to drop their inhibitions once they were under the influence but if you said a word about it when they were sober you would only get pissed off gazes while they deny everything about it. It is not like any of us would judge them since we mostly do whatever we want but if they were not ready to talk about it openly yet then we would not pressure them to do so.

I got myself another glass of water and walked through the house to clear my mind a little and to lift the brain fog that was lingering around me. I had to decide whether I would go upstairs or keep lingering around downstairs and without a doubt I decided to stay downstairs because it was potentially dangerous to walk stairs, although that had the downside that it was more likely that somebody would find me here. I went to the dining room and sat down on one of the chairs, placing the glass on the table and my chin on the back of my hand. I did not feel like vomiting but I also felt like I just came out of a roller coaster.

"Tch... Look at that totally wrecked stumblebum.", somebody said in a sharp tone. At first I thought that I was making things up in my head but then I saw Mr. Ackerman standing on a stool, cleaning some shelves with decorative plates in them. "I am not wrecked", I blabbered, trying my best to speak as clear as possible. "Sure, that's why your lips are covered with a slightly purple-reddish layer.", he sighed in disbelief, "Don't you think you're a little too young to be drinking wine?". "Don't you think you're a little too short to be cleaning the top shelf of that cupboard?", I talked back with a sassy tone not even realizing what I just said. Then it struck my mind and I sat up straight looking at him apprehensively only to see him completely startled. "What the hell did you just say?", he asked rhetorically. He had stopped cleaning and got on the floor walking directly up to me where he slammed his hands on the table, leaving me wincing. "I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean to", I tried to apologize but right now he looked so scary although his face was barely showing any emotion. Maybe that was the scary part of it. "You're drunk, why don't you just go to your friends and leave me be." "I don't want to. I don't feel well around some people.", I mumbled. "I thought you were so tough, or how do you call it, badass. Whatever it's probably only one of your facades that you keep up.". He was probably only trying to mock me so he got rid of me but I found some truth in his words. "Whatever.". "If you don't feel well, then go home.", he ordered. "I can't. My parents can't see me being intoxicated, it would destroy their image of me. Also I already texted them that I would be staying here overnight.", I explained. "Stupid Brat. Then go upstairs and go to sleep.". "I don't want to. All the others are still out there and I don't want them to draw something on my face or do whatever whilst I'm asleep.". "Damn, you really are annoying.", he snarled. I chugged down the last drops of water that was in my glass before getting up from the chair. "What do you think you're doing?", he asked but not in a nice or worried way, more in an annoyed way as if it had anything to do with him. "I want ice cream.", I declared, walking to the entrance to get my bag and was about to go outside when Mr. Ackerman grabbed my wrist before reaching the door handle. "What the hell do you think you're doing? Where are you going all alone at this time, you can't even walk straight.", he scolded me, not letting go of my wrist. "I want to get ice cream", I simply replied. He looked at me in disbelief and shook his head, "You are so dumb and childish.". He quickly grabbed the coat that he was wearing when he was at my place and opened the door in front of me, practically shoving me outside, "Move!". Then he stepped outside too and closed the door behind us.


	8. Chapter 7

As I stood in front of the house it was the first time that I realized how cold it actually was. Now that I was not surrounded by the others or the warming walls of the house it seemed rather chilly and the fact that I had no jacket was not very much helpful. The only thing that made it bearable to be outside like this was the warmth from inside me that came from the fire fueled by all the alcohol I had consumed. Little goosebumps started to appear but could only be seen on my stomach and my neck because that were the only areas that were not covered by clothing. 

"Let's get this over.", Mr. Ackerman huffed after closing the door behind him.

I pretty much ignored him and started walking along the street because the supermarket was a little further away than my house. _What is he doing? I do not need a Babysitter. I am not a child anymore and he is not on duty so why does he bother. His task was to watch us not getting too drunk at the party and keep an eye out so we would not break anything valuable._ I got a little annoyed that he treated me like I needed an adult that would watch over me so I did not get hurt or lost.

When he noticed that I had already been walking away from him he fastened his pace and so that soon he was walking next to me again.

"Why are you doing this?", I asked.

"What do you mean, why am I doing this? I don't want to be the one to explain why you got lost or run over by a car or what other trouble you would get yourself in.", he lashed.

"Am I annoying you with this?".

"Of course you are! Dumb question! I want to get over with this as soon as possible.".

"Then why don't you drive us to the supermarket?".

For a few seconds his face had a slight expression of embarrassment on it but he shook it of quickly.

"Because... I don't have my car here.", he lashed out and fastened his pace, "Come on, I don't want to waste any more time with a Brat like you.".

I caught up with him and kept walking in silence. The cold air was really refreshing but as time went on my consciousness left me more and I started to stagger from one side to the other eventually bumping into his arm from time to time.

"Can you stop that.", Mr. Ackerman told me off but realized that I was not doing this on purpose. He sighed and shook his hand but simultaneously he grabbed my arm so that I could walk almost in a straight line. "We're almost at my car, then you don't have to struggle with easy things like walking anymore.", he mocked me.

"Why is your car here?", I asked very slouching.

"It doesn't matter and you wouldn't remember it anyways. Now stop asking me dumb questions and watch where you're going.".

He dragged me across the street with him until we stood in front of a large black car. I could not see what brand it was but it sure looked expensive. Mr. Ackerman opened the door for the passenger seat and I sat down inside the car, placing my bag on the backseats.

"Can you fasten the seat belt yourself?", he asked waiting there, leaning against the open door.

I tried my best and took the seat belt but as much as I made an effort it just would not click.

"Erg.. Move!", he raised his voice on me and leaned over me, grabbing the seat belt.

"It is not my fault. It's pretty dark in here.".

Then the clicking sound of the clasp could be heard. He moved back again, resting right in front of my face, "Certainly it was because it is too dark inside the car and not because you intoxicated yourself so that your breath reeks of alcohol.", he retorted before closing the door and walking to the other side to sit down in the drivers seat. He started the car and drove off.

As drunk as I was I could still recognize the neighborhood we were in, "Why was your car parked near my house?".

"Didn't I tell you to stop asking me dumb questions.".

"Are you some kind of pervert? A stalker? A pedophile? Do you have an obsession with me? That would explain what happened in the classroom.", my rant went on and on, "Stop the car! I want to get out of here. Where are you taking me? I said stop the car, now!!".

He pulled over to the side and tilted his whole body to me. "Can you shut the fuck up?! Do you even hear what you're saying? I am taking you to the supermarket because you wanted ice cream and I couldn't let you go on your own. My car was parked in that neighborhood because I recently met with a friend and we drank something so I walked home and today I forgot my keys when I met with your Dad. That is why I couldn't get it back then. Now stay silent or I will kick you out of my car and you will rot here because you are too dumb to survive even one night on your own if you think that there could only be the slightest emotional or physical attraction I feel towards you.".

I pushed myself into the seat as he yelled at me, trying to disappear, "I-I'm sorry. I didn't-".

"You didn't do what? You clearly didn't think about it like you do it with everything in your life. You are an irresponsible little kid that is certainly not ready to care for itself let alone care for anyone else. I have friends that had a child and a job when they were your age. They might have made stupid decisions in their past but when they needed to, they were able to behave responsible.".

I could feel my eyes filling with water but I did not want to give him the pleasure of seeing me cry from his words only because that would mean that I would care about his opinion and that he was right. Luckily my phone saved me from being yelled at any more. I took it out of my pocket, but Mr. Ackerman snatched it out of my hands as soon as I had it there. "Hello. Yes, it is with me. She is with me. She wanted to go buy ice cream on her own so I accompanied her. We are currently in the car. What do you mean by that? Mikasa you better not do anything that your parents wouldn't give you permission for. Oh, okay. Yes, I will tell her. Have a good night.". He then gave me my phone back while I stared at him in disbelief.

"What?", he asked in an annoying tone again.

"What was that just now?", I answered with another question and slightly annoyed but rather baffled.

"I saw that Mikasa called you so I took the phone to talk to her.".

"And what do you think gives you permission to do so?".

"The fact that you are intoxicated and that I am the adult watching over you. Also you need to text your parents that you will come home a little bit later.", he said bluntly.

"I can't do that. My parents can't see me like this. I told them I was staying with Mikasa. Why can't I sleep at her's?". My whole head felt like it was spinning. Everything was a little much and it confused me. The sudden mood swings provided to me feeling dizzy.

"She told me that pretty much everyone is wasted and some of them already went home or fell asleep somewhere around the house and some guy is searching for you, I didn't bother to remember his name. But she told me that it would be better if you stayed somewhere else because he keeps asking for you and apparently he was bragging in front of the others what you both would do tonight. I don't want to go into more detail about that.".

"Well then you're probably right and I will spend the night somewhere outside.", I mewled. I was glad that Mikasa warned me beforehand but that meant that I had no place to stay tonight and that did not make the situation any better. I let my head drop down alongside with my mood.

"Hey, come on we'll figure something out. Now lets get you that ice cream so you stop frowning.", he tried to cheer me up but it would have been more encouraging if he would finally show some emotions.

Nevertheless he started his car again and drove straight to the supermarket. I still pushed myself into the seat because I was worried about how the night would end. I could either stay at my place and get yelled at by my parents because I had drank so much and I probably could not even play it down. They would surely remember that and use it against me forever and on top of that they would have a bad impression of Mikasa. And explaining why Mr. Ackerman drove me home? No thanks. I could also stay at Mikasa's but then I would have to deal with Rainer and whatever he expected to happen this night but either way I would have to deal with him. If not tonight, then the next time I saw him and I had to explain to him why I went home. Soon we arrived at the Supermarket and Mr. Ackerman parked his car, got out and opened the door for me.

"Now don't make such an ungrateful face. I just drove you here, now come out.". I unbuckled the seat belt and got out of the car, shutting the door behind me. We walked to the entrance after he had locked the car. I did not want to be ungrateful but my mind was constantly drifting to scenarios of how the night could end for me and they changed as fast as I swayed from one side to another. This continued until Mr. Ackerman suddenly grabbed me by my shoulders and stopped in front of the store.

"You have to act as sober as you can, do you understand that?", he asked in a tone as if he was talking to a little child. Although it would be strange and alarming if someone would actually have to say that to a little kid. 

Nevertheless I nodded but as straight as I thought I was walking, I still must have staggered from left to right because he now placed his right arm around my shoulders and pulled me closer to him so that he kept me from walking in wavy lines. Like this we entered the store and walked right away to the department with the freezers.

The store was almost empty. While we walked to the back I only saw an elderly woman who was pushing her shopping cart through the aisles and some younger people who stood at the cash register. 

When we stopped in front of the freezer with the ice cream Mr. Ackerman let go of me and I felt like a kid in a candy store. Well I kinda was. I picked out an ice cream tub and as soon as Mr. Ackerman had noticed that he grabbed me again and almost shoved me to the register. 

"Wait..", I said and stopped him from walking any further. My smile that had spread across my face was now once again gone.

"What is it now?", he asked annoyed and a little infuriated.

"I don't have a spoon. If I can't stay at MIkasa's or at my place then I also can't eat this ice cream.", I let my gaze fall to the ground.

"That's what you're worried about now?", he laughed about my behavior, then sighed and then he bent closer to me whispering "If it's only for a spoon I can take you to my place. It's not like you have been bothering me the whole evening already, is it.".

I narrowed my eyebrows. At that moment I couldn't think of any reason why this would be a bad idea, so I freely spoke my mind, "Why are you whispering? It's not like they would care that you're taking me to your place.".

He rolled his eyes, "I am whispering because it is not common that a teacher is at a store with a student and it makes it even worse knowing that you're intoxicated. Now if someone would hear that I am taking you to my place they could easily misunderstand the whole situation and think I would take advantage of you because you're under the influence.".

I nodded. My brain took a bit longer to process what he had just said. "Wait, What? Are you sure?".

"Yes. And now let us pay for this.", he pointed to the ice cream in my hands.

"Okay.", I grinned widely, my teeth showing, "Thanks. Can we get some more snacks then?".

Mr. Ackerman just shook his head in disbelief and pulled me with him "No.". 

The moment we stood in front of the cash register it hit me like a truck. _FUCK!_ I had forgot my bag in the car and therefore I had no money. _Did I even take any money with me? I cannot remember taking my purse with me._ Once again I was smiling but this time it was a smile that you have when you want something from your parents. You have not told them that you want something from them but by your facial expression only they can already tell.

"What is it this time? You really are starting to get on my nerves.", he huffed.

"I may or may not have forgotten to take money with me".

He only sighed and took out his wallet from the pocket on the inside of his coat and paid for the ice cream. Then, as soon as I took the ice cream, he grabbed me by my shoulders like before and dragged me outside to his car. I must have pissed him off really badly because he was not saying a word. He only opened the door for me, let me get in and then fastened the seat belt before getting in the car himself. His facial expression was once again blank and motionless. The moment of malicious joy from before when he even laughed a little seemed to never have happened. 

The whole drive there was this tension in the air. Neither one of us said a word during the whole drive and it made me even more uncomfortable than when we were fighting. The air seemed thick and it made it harder to breathe. My eyes were on him every now and then but he did nothing but focus on the road. Eventually I let myself sink into the seat and lean against the door watching the orange street lights pass by as we drove through the darkness of the night.

Mr. Ackerman finally broke the silence when we arrived in front of his house. He didn't open the door for me this time. He didn't seem like he cared now that there was nobody who could see us.

"Don't forget your bag this time.", he remarked standing outside of the car with only his head inside of the car his eyes passing mine right before he closed the door.

I unbuckled the seat belt and grabbed my bag from the back seat. Then I got out of the car, closing the door behind me, following Mr. Ackerman who was already standing in front of the front door. He turned around once to lock the car pushing the little button on the key, then he opened the door and stepped inside. 

As I entered the house I felt weird. The whole situation was weird. I was inside the house of my English teacher, drunk, holding an ice cream tub when Mr. Ackerman and I did not even talk because he seemed mad and I did not want to confront him about it.

I took off my shoes and placed them in the shoe cabinet next to his. His place looked nice and comfortable although it reminded me a little of my own. Everything was clean. The Coats and Jackets were all hung nicely on the hall-stand all buttoned and zipped up. There was a white cupboard with drawers that had a grey stone pattern on them with a glass vase filled with what I think were plastic flowers. The walls were painted white with not a single spot or stain on them. If I did not know that he was living here it would almost seem like it was up for sale. It looked nicely enough and invites one in with the charm it had yet you would not expect someone to actually live here. It was just too clean. Too inanimate. It actually represented Mr. Ackerman pretty well. It reminded me of his motionless face that was so blank that it scared me from time to time.

I looked around wondering if I was maybe actually in a dream. This house reminded me of a dollhouse and Mr. Ackermans robotic behavior would be explained that way too. But I had to discard that thought soon enough.

"Are you coming or do you want to stand there until the ice cream has melted?".

"I'm coming", I exclaimed hurrying after him into the living room.


	9. Chapter 8

Mr. Ackerman waited for me at the end of a staircase that led to the second floor. From there we walked straight into an open living room which was bathed in the light from the moon and the stars that came through all the grand windows. He walked over to turn on the light but as soon as he turned the switch and flicked the lights on my eyes squinched up and I held my hand in front of my eyes to shield them from the blinding lights.

"No, turn it off again."

He looked at me questioning. Then I could see a mischievous smirk on his face by how far my eyes had adjusted to the bright lights that came from the lamp hanging from the ceiling.

"Manners.", he stated solely.

"Erg..?"

He startled me with that statement.

"Where are your manners? Commanding an elder like one of your friends. Do you talk to your parents like this too? Are you that poorly raised?"

"What? No, I don't! And gross, don't ever put yourself on one level with my parents."

"Then be more respectful!"

"Yes, yes I will. But first, please turn off these goddamn lights before they burn my eyes until I'm blind. How can you even live here with these, no wonder you're always in a bad mood."

"Not exactly what I wanted to hear but you said please."

And with that said he turned the lights off again. I let out a sigh and lowered my hand again. Now I could place my bag next to the grand grey couch. I couldn't tell if it was actually grey or if it was just the lighting but I did not pay attention to it when the lights were turned on.

"Don't put that there.", Mr. Ackerman told me off immediately, so I picked the bag up again.

"Where should I put it then?"

"Somewhere else. It has dirt on it, I don't want it touching any of my furniture or the walls or they could get dirty.", he then murmured something to himself, "But it was already in my car, means I need to vacuum it soon."

I simply rolled my eyes and placed it behind the couch so that it would not touch it. After that I sat down on the couch and finally opened the lid of the ice cream tub.

"Mr. Ackerman, can you get me a spoon for this?", I asked, turning my head to look at him but when I saw his judging but still kind of blank expression I added a quick, "please."

He walked downstairs again and a few moments later he came back upstairs handing me a small silver spoon while taking a seat next to me. With a subtile groan he leaned against the backrest his head stretching over it so that he faced the ceiling. I took a glimpse of him while putting a spoonful of ice cream in my mouth.

"Don't call me that. It feels weird being called by my last name when I'm at home.", he then said in a way that sounded worn out almost a little sad.

"Then what should I call you?"

"Levi."

"Levi?"

"Yes, that's my name. Got a problem with that?", his eyes glanced over at me and it let a shiver run down my spine. He seemed to be in a bad mood again.

"Under one condition"

"And that would be?"

"Call me by my name.", I told him before putting another scoop inside of my mouth.

He lowered his head and leaned forward. His arms were resting on his thighs and his hands were folded. A few strands of the dark hair of his had fallen in his face and were swinging in front of his eyes that were piercing me.

"I already do that."

"No, you don't.", he opened his mouth to disagree but I cut him off, "you only mocked me calling me names all night."

Mr. Ackerman's mouth closed shut and he seemed to actually think about it.

"You're right, Y/N." 

My eyes widened a little as he said that and I choked a little on my ice cream which resulted in me coughing. _Am I dreaming? Did he really just say that I am right? My statement was correct? And he accepted it just like that?! And on top of that he wants me to call him by his first name! I do not know what is going on right now but it seems off. Why is he nice one moment and the next one he is cold and then he gets pissed off and then he is motionless again. I really do not get this man but maybe it is something that happens to one when you get older._

"What's the big deal?"

"I-it's nothing, really."

"Well, then what are we going to do now? Just sitting here in the dark until you finish your ice cream? By the way do you inhale that stuff, it is half way empty already."

"It was less than 500 ml and I really like ice cream so stop mocking me."

"You really are an easy target."

"Stop it, I'm not."

"You are."

"No, why should I?"

"Because you're easy to make fun of."

"So are you."

"Pardon me."

"I said what I said."

He shook his head and laughed. Although it sounded like he was choking on something his smile while he was laughing was somewhat charming. His bright white teeth were visible and his eyes were almost closed. I think that was the most expression I had ever seen on his face. It made his usual appearance fade out. His usually frowning face lit up and for the first time I realized how deceptively youthful his face looked despite his behavior. I was not too sure how old he actually was and that made me wonder. He was a teacher and from his language and from how he acted I would say he was rather old, but moments like these which were rather rare and probably not even supposed to be with a student made him seem like a young adult. The grumpy old man I knew from class disappeared.

"So, do you live here all by yourself", I asked. I did not want to fall into the house with the door asking about his age so I started of with some simple questions. 

"Do you see anybody else here? Were there any other shoes downstairs?"

"Sheesh.. I get it, you live alone. No need to come at me like that. Then what about your job?"

Mr. Ackerman stared into space then he turned his head to me. His head was slightly tilted to the side and his eyes were narrowed, but not in an intimidating way, or at least not as intimidating as usual but rather in a questioning way.

"Did you smoke something at that party?"

"What?! No!"

"Then why are you asking your teacher about his work?"

"I.. erm.. I meant to ask you about your intentions of working as a teacher. Why did you become a teacher?"

I had saved that one pretty good or at least I thought so. Mr. Ackerman was still looking at me because of my suspicious behavior but he seemed to just shake that off and answered the question.

"I figured that I like to educate people and it turned out that I enjoyed working as a teacher."

His answer made me almost spit out the ice cream I had in my mouth.

"You enjoy being a teacher?!"

"Yes, otherwise I wouldn't be one."

"Then why are you always so grumpy in school? Why do you torture us and act like you hate us?"

"I said I like educating you, that doesn't mean I enjoy being around children that are driven by their hormones and have nothing good on their mind. It is a part of my job to deal with you to educate you. Call it what you want."

"And at what age did you know you wanted to become a teacher?"

"Probably somewhere between the time when I was 18 to 26. I don't know the exact moment but I was thinking about my future a lot so it must've been around that time."

"And how old are you right now?"

I tried to sneak that question in the best I could but he still gave me a look. Nevertheless he only took a deep breath and sighed before answering.

"I'm 34 years old."

That wasn't too old. If I had judged him for his behavior I would have guessed he was at least older than 40 years old but from his looks he could also be in his late twenties. 

"Didn't you expect me to be that old.. or young?", he raised one eyebrow.

"That's the point."

"What? Am I older than you thought or am I younger?"

"It's complicated to explain but I would say both."

By now I had finished the tub of ice cream.

"You sure are a weird girl."

I just shrugged my shoulders and got up from the couch, wanting to dispose it, but Mr. Ackerman stopped me before I could take it anywhere. He took the empty tub out of my hand and placed it on coaster on the little table in front of the couch.

"I'll take that to the kitchen later."

"Okay."

Now that I had nothing to do I realized how awkward this whole situation was. Once again it hit me like a truck that I was actually at my teachers place. All this time we were sitting in this almost dark room talking while I was eating ice cream that he had bought for me. Surprisingly it was not a bad awkward situation but more of a calm on. Mr. Ackerman seemed to be a nice person if he wasn't the tyrant that I had seen at school. He had been answering all of my questions and acted somewhat nice. I had even seen him laugh tonight. It was like he was a completely different person once I got to know him more personal. Although I had to admit that I had forced myself on him with my former actions, this night seemed to take a nice turn.

"I think you should go brush your teeth and change. The bathroom is the first door on the left"

Right when I thought the age gap between us was slowly decreasing he started acting like a parent again.

"I guess I'll go do that then."

Walking around the couch I grabbed my bag and took it to the bathroom with me where I locked the door right after I had turned the light on. My eyes started to burn from the bright light once again but I had no other choice so I hurried to get my toothbrush and toothpaste out and started to brush my teeth while I simultaneously undressed until I was left standing there in my lingerie. Once I had finished brushing my teeth I cleaned the toothbrush and laid it on the rim of the sink to wash my face. Then I took off my bra, put on an oversized, white shirt with grey imprint and a pair of black shorts. The clothes I had worn before were stuffed into my bag before I unlocked the door again. 

As I walked to the living room, leaving my bag right where I did before, I found Mr. Ackerman on the couch sitting on the same spot as when I left but now he had changed into a loose white shirt and a pair of long, gray sweatpants. When I sat down on the couch again I turned my head to the wall to my right. It was still dark and I had no idea what he was doing but his left pant leg was rolled up and he seemed to be applying some kind of cream to it. However I thought it was more appropriate to turn around as I did not know what exactly he was doing.

"What's the matter?", he bluntly asked.

"What are you doing?", I slowly turned towards him again, my eyes narrowed.

"Applying scar cream to my leg. Come on Y/N it's not that much of a big deal, don't act so childish."

"Sorry. I just wasn't sure what you were doing."

When I caught sight of the part where he was massaging the cream into the skin on his leg I could see a huge scar that went from his ankle to his knee. Despite the poor lighting it was still clearly visible.

"What did you think I was doing? Do you really think I would do anything reprehensible while I have a student over?"

"I don't know. But if you say it like that it sounds as if it is nothing new to you that you have a student over."

Mr. Ackerman just looked at me in disbelief. He did not say anything in response to this. I figured that he ignored it because the thought of him having students over did not only seem ridiculous but also more than unrealistic as no student would come here by choice. If it were different teacher then maybe, but not with Mr. Ackerman.

He closed the creme tube and rolled down the leg of his pant.

"Coming back to the question I asked before and which you seemed to have ignored, what are we going to do now? Do you want to go to bed or do I have to watch after you much longer?"

"If you're already giving me the option to keep you on your toes some more, then sure. I'll figure something we can do."

"That was not my intention when I asked you this."

"I know."

I stood up and walked up to the windows. The sky reminded me of the depths of the ocean as it was a dark blue. It did not reveal anything like it really was an ocean and there could still be so many unknown things that we would probably figure out. The stars and the moon on the contrary were shining so bright that the darkness was easily forgotten. It really was beautiful. It was so beautiful that I wanted to see more of it. Be closer to this unknown darkness that was somehow luring me further to it. So I opened the door that led to the balcony.

"Hey, what are you up to over there?", Mr. Ackerman asked.

I did not answer, as I was already outside, leaning against the frosty metal of the railing. The stone floor under my feet felt smooth and although it was cold outside everything felt amazing. The freezing air that filled my lungs and the steam that escaped them with every breath. Goosebumps started forming all over my skin and chills were running down my spine every time a gust of wind came by.

"What are you doing out here?", Mr. Ackerman repeated his question.

I turned around to face him, my arms leaning on the railing.

"Enjoying the night."

"It's cold, come back inside."

"No. It's too beautiful to be seen through glass only. We should stay here for a while."

"You're crazy."

"Is that supposed to be something bad? If so, I don't care.", with that said I laid down on the floor, watching the stars.

"Stop it, you're only getting dirt on your clothes."

"Be quiet and lay down. Maybe you wouldn't be so grumpy if you put that stick out of your ass that you seem to be carrying with you everywhere."

Even though the stars were lighting up the night, it was still hard to see much. Therefore it was amusing me even more when I could see the white in his eyes as I said this.

Nevertheless he got on the ground and laid down next to me.

"What now?", he muttered.

"Just enjoy."

"Enjoy what?"

"The view."

I closed my eyes for a bit to be able to smell the refreshing cold air filled with the scent of the big spruce that stood in Mr. Ackermans backyard. Instead of the smell of fir I had a spicy aromatic smell with an earthy aroma lingering around me. The fragrance stood out so much but it did not irritate me at all. It was quite nice and made me feel warm and comfortable taking me to a completely different place and making me forget that I was actually laying on the stone cold floor of a balcony in the middle of the night. It blurred out the cold air and made me want to stay like this longer. It was a fragrance that seemed familiar. After a few minutes I got out of the trance I had fallen into and noticed that it seemed kind of suspicious that Mr. Ackerman had been silent for so long, so I opened my eyes again and let my view wander to him and for a second I thought he had his gaze on me and just looked up at the stars but that seemed quite silly. Why would he even look at me when he disliked the thought of lying next to me from the beginning.

My mind still kept wandering off and I could not grasp a clear thought for long. I got distracted by every little thing that changed in my surrounding. The calming atmosphere and the cold air seemed to help a little bit but still the thoughts were flying around in my head.

"It is also really pleasing to see that you took my words into consideration", I said, breaking the silence.

"Pardon me?", he exclaimed obviously confused.

I tilted my head to the side facing him, though he had his gaze on the stars.

"Those were your words when we parted after the lunch. It kept bugging me. What did you mean by saying this?"

Levi tilted his head and looked me right in the eyes. A few loose strands of his dark, silky hair fell in front of them.

"Your shoes."

I could not grasp a single thought. Not only were my thoughts all over the place but right now I found myself lost in his eyes too. There was not even an arm length between us, and we were both rather small so that means there was really not that much space between our faces and his eyes locked mine. It left me unable to move but otherwise my whole body felt at ease. That was the moment I realized that the fragrance I had noticed before came from him. It calmed me even more. His whole presence was pleasant. His deeply grey eyes were reflecting the stars, like he had his own little galaxy inside of him. Again I could have stayed like that for an eternity. I genuinely enjoyed the time I had spent with him.

Therefore his words confused me even more. Maybe it was because I was drunk, maybe I was also a little tired but nothing really added up. We had fought so much this evening, we yelled at each other and still we managed to just lay here not saying a single word and it felt as if the world stopped spinning.

"My Shoes..", I repeated it, still caught in the moment, "W-what do you mean my shoes? How does that add up?"

"I told you to be more like yourself and you did not wear the heels."

"And you immediately thought that it was because of what you said to me?"

"Well, was it?"

"No, of course not. You're delusional. I just did not feel like breaking a leg while being drunk. I might not be the smartest cookie in the jar but that does not mean that I don't have common sense."

"Well, that is arguable.", he said, his hand slowly reaching closer to my face. 

My body was torn between backing away because it was the natural thing I did or staying in place because I wanted the moment to last. Before I was to decide what to do his fingers were already gliding through my hair.

"What are you doing?", I said with my voice down. 

I had my eyes locked with his for a short moment. Then he looked at something behind me or somewhere near me, still my gaze was fixed on his. How could a grey shade be so much more than just this boring dull color. Maybe it was the mixture of the different shades of grey but it fascinated me and had me focused so much that I did not care about him stroking my hair.

"You have there something in your hair, but I can't quite see whether I got it out or not." 

He liftet himself up a little, leaning with one arm still on the ground. His upper body was hovering over my face leaving only so much space between his loose white shirt and my face that the fabric would not brush my face. Levi went through my hair one last time, then he sat up on instead of lying down again.

"Let's go inside, it's getting pretty late and it's also chill out here, I don't want either of us to catch a cold."

He then stood up and held out his hand to me, signaling me to get up too. I grabbed his hand with both of mine and pulled myself up. Simultaneously he pulled me towards him which led to me bumping against him. He looked down on me, as I was standing right in front of him, facing his chest. I did not dare to lookup. Neither did I want to look up at him. My cheeks seemed to flare up with a rosy tint - the smell that surrounded him was just too alluring and it kept stinging in my nose creating a pleasant pain. He did not have to know that there was this heat inside of me.

The heat that made the cold night seem like a warm summer night dream with a soft breeze. The leaves rustling silently as the trees moved as if they were swiftly dancing to the song playing in my head. Everything around me faded away and my head started spinning but I did not feel dizzy, not at all. My imagination ran wild and pictures of this magical night flashed before my eyes.

It was not until Mr. Ackerman said something to me that I got out of this daydream and in an instant my body was hit with some cold gusts of wind. Goosebumps started to show up all over my body. I looked up at Mr. Ackerman, as he run his fingers over my arm.

"See, your body wants to tell you that you should go back in. Now get inside. I don't want to repeat myself a third time."

My body moved stiffly as he shoved me through the door, closing it behind us. As i stood inside the warm halls of his house I realized how cold it actually had been. A shiver went down my spine as my body adjusted to the temperature change. Mr. Ackerman pulled closed the curtains leaving just enough light to see the outlines of the furnishings.

"Now enough playing around, it's time to go to bed. You can sleep in the guest bedroom. It's the last door on the left. Go ahead, I'll get us a glass of water."

The monochrome color scheme flattered him. My thoughts were still not completely gathered, so I simply nodded, listening halfheartedly. Then he went downstairs and I was left in the darkness.


End file.
